Procrastination And Laziness Essay

The Root of Procrastination: Laziness Mental Issue?

Procrastination, as most people define it, is the putting off of an important task for a certain or indefinite length of time. People who procrastinate often are, in some cases, accused of being lazy. Someone who procrastinates instead of studying, or accomplishing an important task at his or her job, for example, is often called lazy. Laziness is found in people who don’t accomplish many tasks on a daily basis, or are typically sloppy with their appearance and timeliness. The question that I hope to answer throughout the course of this paper is this: is the root of procrastination laziness, or is it a mental issue that needs addressing?

To put the question in more practical terms, consider this hypothetical example. Suppose two freshmen enter the same

college together. Both students are taking an eighteen-hour course load, and both play for the college’s football team. The two also have the same amount of intelligence, and the same daily routine. The difference between them, however, is one (Student A) spends each night going over the material covered in class that day, while the other (Student B) prefers to play video games, and save studying for later. The night before their final, Student A sleeps soundly because he has studied all semester and is comfortable with the material. Student B, however, stays up the entire night cramming because he has put off studying for too long, and is unprepared for the final. When they get their grades back, both students have passed their courses. This narrative begs the answer to a few questions. Is Student B lazy, and got lucky on the final exam? Was the one stressful night of studying worth the endless hours of procrastinating? Is he suffering from a mental issue that prevents him from coping with the amount of work needed to succeed?
In his article, “Are Procrastinators Just Lazy?” Timothy A Pychyl (PhD) tries to get to the bottom of this question.

Pychyl states in his article “Procrastination and laziness share key attributes[,] such as the reluctance to act and a lack of strong motivation in dictionary definitions.” (1). Pychyl directs the reader to take a more philosophical approach to differentiating between the two words. There seems to be no concrete definition for laziness (Pychyl 2). The definiton of laziness, Pychyl argues, would be purely the opinion of the one labeling the accused individual (2). Pychyl implies that the key to discerning between procrastination and laziness lies in the motives of the subject exhibiting these traits (1). Pychyl explains that it is the morality of a person which determines if they are lazy (2). For example, if Student B did not care about his studies, and procrastinated solely for the enjoyment of playing video games, then by Pychyl’s definition he is lazy. If, however, Student B became overwhelmed with the workload of the day, and just wanted a few moments of relaxation right before going to bed, then his procrastination doesn’t stem from

laziness.
Procrastination isn’t just laziness. It is an actual issue that stems from other mental problems. In a study done by Ferrari and Diaz-Morales, men and women (104) were selected as test subjects (8). These subjects, who were Spanish students, were tested to see their “…tendency to avoid starting or completing tasks across a variety of everyday situations.” (Ferrari, Diaz-Morales 8). The results showed that students who engaged in procrastination less led more fulfilling lives than those that did (Ferrari, Diaz-Morales 8). Ferrari and Diaz-Morales states that people who procrastinate often usually “…are less likely to express their needs and concerns, necessary for effective coping.” (10). Ferrari and Diaz-Morales also mention in their article “…chronic procrastination may lead to greater perceived stress plus the delay or omission of important adjustment behaviors, resulting in poor mental health.” (10).
What does this prove? Ferrari and Diaz-Morales state the “Implications are considered relevant to student personality and development.” (8). Could it be these students who procrastinate have more difficulty adjusting to pressure than others? Is this the case for every person who procrastinates?
A study done by Jackson, Weiss, and Lundquist shows the happiness of a person is partially weighed by how well they strive under stress (204). If one is happy, then it is reasonable to assume that he/she would be living a productive life. If happiness is measured by how well one manages stress, then there are two possible answers. If a person does not handle stress well, then they will allow the stress to take over, which would ruin productivity. If a person handles stress well, then they have a higher percentage of productivity. Chrisoula Andreou explores this idea further in her article “Understanding Procrastination”. Andreou states that people who exhibit procrastination regularly are caught in what is called a “preference loop” (184). A preference loop can be described as an endless cycle where decisions are repeated over and over again with the same results (Andreou 188). Is it possible, then, to say some people actually prefer to procrastinate, adding unnecessary stress to their objective? The answer, in short, is yes. Dr. Pychyl writes in his article “Savouring the Flavors of Delay” “Only some forms of delay are truly problematic.” (28). Some people, Pychyl argues, actually thrive in the pressure that procrastination brings, stating, “…all procrastination is delay, but not all delay is procrastination.” (Pychyl 26). Choi and Moran also agree that this form of procrastination is valid in their article, “Why Not Procrastinate? Development and Validation of a New Active Procrastination Scale”.
Further research is necessary to fully explore this idea. My research was not able to clearly indicate whether or not procrastination is caused by mental illness or laziness alone, and added the possibility of the existence of a positive form of procrastination. It is common for many people to think of procrastination as just another word for laziness. While it is true that there are some individuals who cite “procrastination issues” as an excuse for their laziness, it is worth noting my research showed more evidence for behavioral and coping problems as causes for procrastination than laziness. I would suggest one research the “positive procrastination” phenomenon, as well as the different coping and behavioral issues exhibited in those who often procrastinate. While there is more research needed to fully explore this topic, one thing is for certain: procrastination is a complex issue.