Studies Show Putting Off Work Worsens Physical and Mental Behaviors
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Ross Ching, Staff Photographer | Putting off studying for an upcoming test may cause more than just stress.
A 2002 study conducted by Fuschia Sirois and Timothy Pychyl of Carleton University in Ottawa found college students who procrastinate on their schoolwork are likely to have unhealthy sleep, diet and exercise patterns.
Procrastinating on academic work also yields to higher rates of smoking, drinking, digestive ailments, insomnia and cold and flu symptoms. Procrastinators also have a tendency to postpone seeking medical treatment for acute health problems, according to the study.
Marsha Weinberg, a licensed clinical social worker at Counseling and Psychological Services at San Diego State, said procrastination involves a substitution or delaying of one particular activity for another.
Students who procrastinate often experience a lot of stress, worry and fear.
"It's really hard to be a procrastinator and not feel stressed," Weinberg said.
Why Students ProcrastinateStudents may also procrastinate because of fear, boredom or rebellion. They may delay activities because they feel uncomfortable or have poor impulse control, she said.
"It takes a lot of determination to sit down and say, 'do a paper,'" she said. "It's hard work. There might be things that you'd rather be doing, and so it takes a lot of commitment and dedication."
Political science sophomore Adam Snyder said students procrastinate because they are afraid of facing what they have to do.
Procrastinating allows Snyder to delay completing assignments he doesn't prefer, such as his history essays, he said.
However, he recognizes procrastinating causes assignments to build up and increases anxiety, he said.
"All of a sudden, instead of one thing, you've got to do a ton of other things, and then it just gets horrible," Snyder said.
Snyder's procrastination causes him unnecessary stress.
"It's kind of like a Band-Aid," he said. "You just rip it off all at once, and it's painful."
Changing BehaviorsWeinberg said overcoming procrastination requires breaking a habit and learning time management skills.
"Anytime you're talking about changing a behavioral habit, it's going to take commitment, dedication and a lot of practice," she said.
The first step toward changing a procrastination habit is acknowledgment, Weinberg said.
"Anytime you find yourself saying later is better, that's typically a red flag to yourself - a clue to yourself that you're procrastinating" she said.
Accounting senior Dave Kausek said people procrastinate mostly because they feel bogged down when they are constantly doing work. At a point, one's social life takes priority, he said.
Kausek, who is procrastinating on a paper himself, said sometimes students can be out of touch with reality.
People should know if they won't be able to finish a 20-page paper in four hours, or even in one night, he said.
"Students should be realistic with themselves," Kausek said. "If they know they can get something done the night before, then that's fine."
Pychyl and Sirois's study, along with others before, found no correlation between a student's grade point average and the level at which he or she procrastinates.
Some students procrastinate but still get good grades because they do a good job, Kausek said. Other procrastinators are lazy and don't really care.
"Procrastination is a bit of an art form," he said. "Those who do it well are very gifted and talented."
However, Weinberg said procrastinators who do well in classes may still suffer.
"You can procrastinate, and you still might be able to pull off a good grade, but you really have to weigh that against the mental, psychological, emotional and physical anguish that you've felt," she said.
Organization is one way students can overcome procrastination. Making a timeline of what needs to be done and breaking tasks down is helpful, she said.
Weinberg recommends books such as Do It Now!: Break the Procrastination Habit and The Procrastination Workbook: Your Personalized Program for Breaking Free From the Patterns That Hold You Back, both by Dr. William Knaus, to help students who are struggling with the habit.
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