Eva Nábělková, Jana Ratkovská

Slovak Republic

Academic Procrastination and Factors Contributing

to Its Overcoming

Abstract

Procrastination is generally understood as the practice of irrationally putting

activities or tasks off to a later time. In the case of academic procrastination, it is
a tendency to put off academic tasks. The main objective of the presented research
study was to map strategies of Slovak university students used for overcoming
academic procrastination, as well as to test the relationship of procrastination
with potential protective factors – volitional regulation and achievement moti-
vation. Based on the results of our research, strategies of social motivation and
positive attitude are, on average, the most frequently used to overcome academic
procrastination. Results of the research also confirmed a negative correlation of
procrastination with volitional regulation and its dimensions, as well as with some
dimensions of achievement motivation.

Keywords: academic procrastination, volitional regulation, achievement moti-

vation, strategies for overcoming procrastination, university students

Procrastination may be briefly characterized as the irrational tendency to delay

tasks that need to be completed at a certain time (Lay, 1995). So far, this phenom-
enon has not had a universal, generally accepted definition. However, most of its
definitions emphasize its negative aspects – it is illogical postponement of activi-
ties despite the fact that the individual expects negative consequences of putting
the task off (Steel, 2007). Often, already the postponement itself is connected with
experiencing tension and discomfort (Solomon, Rothblum, 1984).
108 Eva Nábělková, Jana Ratkovská

It follows from the above that procrastination is primarily understood as a cer-

tain type of behaviour. However, the concept of procrastination may be under-
stood also as a personality characteristic or trait (Schouwenburg, 2004), thus in
terms of a relatively stable tendency to procrastinate. J.R. Ferrari (2004) identified
so-called chronic procrastinators with the trait procrastination. C.H. Lay (1995)
defined trait procrastination as a repeated dilatory and postponing behaviour and
he identified everyday confrontations with time gaps, intentions and actions as the
main feature of chronic procrastinators.

Academic Procrastination

Some people procrastinate their obligations only from time to time, others post-
pone fulfilment of their tasks almost always (general procrastination) and some
are characterised by putting them off only in certain specific contexts (situational
procrastination). Academic procrastination may be considered as a certain form
of situational procrastination, linked with school settings connected with meeting
and observing various deadlines.
In their research, L.J. Solomon and E.D. Rothblum (1984) found out that as
many as 50% of students procrastinated regularly and approximately 38% pro-
crastinated occasionally. Results of other foreign studies indicate up to 80 – 95% of
procrastinators (Steel, 2007). One of our previous studies on a sample of Slovak
university students identified 68% of trait procrastinators (Nábělková, Rendveiová,
2009).
N.  Milgram and R.  Tenne (2000) proposed and empirically confirmed the
concept of academic procrastination including three basic areas: appraisal, anxiety
and avoidance. Appraising academic tasks as difficult and stressing leads indi-
viduals to more frequent avoidance of these tasks, and this is accompanied with
their experiencing increased anxiety. Failure to fulfil academic obligations in time
increases negative consequences and further avoidance of the activity follows.
Thus, it is not only poor time management or a low level of student abilities
that underlie academic procrastination. In addition to the above-mentioned
anxiety, also other factors were proposed, potentially leading to procrastinating
behaviour, e.g. indecision, reluctance towards self-regulation, lack of assertiveness,
fear of possible failure, dislike of the tasks to be fulfilled, or also a too perfectionist
approach (Özer et al., 2009).
By means of a  meta-analysis of previous studies, P.  Steel (2007) found out
that strong predictors of procrastination are, among other things, low consci-
Academic Procrastination and Factors Contributing to Its Overcoming 109

entiousness associated with low self-control and/or self-regulation and lack of

achievement motivation. These are the very factors focused on also in our study
on academic procrastination in Slovak university students.

Volitional Regulation

A  characteristic feature of studying at university is relatively distant goals.

Getting a reward, such as passing an exam, may be considered a goal distant in
time. In between, students are confronted with stimuli, activities or tasks which
are less important, but of current interest. Thus, eventually, preparation for an
important exam becomes subjectively less important and students put off obliga-
tions associated with the exam to a later time. Such situations of current interest,
containing a conflict with long-term goals, place high demands on the individual’s
self-regulatory properties used to direct his or her experiencing and behaviour.
Regulation is a complicated process during which the individual often has to
give up activities he or she likes to undertake, or, on the contrary, has to undertake
activities that are not to his or her liking. The self-regulation model by B.J. Zim-
merman (1990) includes self-regulatory processes used during the activity itself
(e.g. processes of self-control and introspection). The basis of these processes is
emotional control protecting concentration and effort from distraction.
According to M. Nakonečný (1997), the concept of volition includes processes
as well as a set of personality volitional properties, while forming a unity, since
volitional properties are directly involved in the volitional regulation of behaviour.
In general, it is the volitional properties that reflect the ability of self-control and
self-regulation that manifests itself in suppressing unwanted tendencies and in
the effort exerted to overcome obstacles, or in setting and attaining more distant
goals (Nakonečný, 1997). In the context of our study, we focused on the volitional
properties of decisiveness, persistence and self-discipline in connection with
academic procrastination.
V. Kubáni (2010) defines decisiveness as the ability to make a decision in a fixed
time, in given living conditions, while the individual’s decision is attested to by
practice and time. This property does not include only the decision itself, but also
carrying the decision out. According to the author, persistence ensures that the
decision is carried through, mainly if there are obstacles and disturbances. Self-
discipline may be considered as the ability to control one’s own behaviour and to
avoid anything unwanted. It is also the ability to control one’s own impulses and
affects (Kubáni, 2010).
110 Eva Nábělková, Jana Ratkovská

Achievement Motivation

Several authors consider academic procrastination to be primarily a problem

of motivation including more than only poor organizational skills or laziness
(Ferrari et al., 1995; Lee, 2005). In behaviour regulation situations where certain
performance should be delivered, not only specific abilities, but also the need to
achieve a certain performance standard, are manifested. Individuals with the same
abilities in a given area achieve a different level of performance precisely depend-
ing on their motivation (Kubáni, 2007). Achievement motivation may be defined
as a total of internal dispositions stimulating an individual to achieve good results
in various types of activities (Sejčová, 2007).
Within the model of achievement motivation, W. Atkinson and D.C. McClel-
land (as cited in Sejčová, 2007) described certain elements that may be applied also
to student academic activities. First of all, students must be convinced of achieving
success in their future activity. In addition, they must find the activity meaningful,
so that they activate cognitive processes linked to the goal-orientation. Thus, goal
setting depends on the likelihood of success and on the value of the goal to be
achieved. The level of achievement motivation, then, derives from this.

Research Objective and Questions

University students have a specific system of schooling, within which they are
confronted with a time distance from the final goal (a passed exam, a submitted
project, etc.) and with current incentives that may defer the planned work (time
spent with friends, on the internet, etc.). Students achieve their goals also through
their self-regulatory and motivational characteristics. Our research focused on
the examination of the relationship between academic procrastination and
achievement motivation and volitional regulation, with the ambition to support
the assumption that the given constructs may be considered protective in relation
to procrastination.
In addition, our objective was to map strategies used by university students to
overcome procrastination. Thus, we were looking for answers to the following
research questions:
RQ1: What strategies for overcoming procrastination are most frequently used
by university students?
RQ2: Is there a relationship between academic procrastination and volitional
regulation or its dimensions (decisiveness, perseverance, self-discipline)?
Academic Procrastination and Factors Contributing to Its Overcoming 111

RQ3: Is academic procrastination related to the dimensions of achievement

motivation (achievement motive, anxiety improving achievement and anxiety
hindering achievement)?

Research Sample and Methodology

Our research sample (obtained by occasional sampling) consisted of 174 Slovak

university students (average age of 22), 147 women and 27 men, studying at Matej Bel
University and Medical University in Banská Bystrica and at Technical University in
Zvolen. The following courses of study were represented: social, economic and legal
sciences (48%), upbringing and education (38%), agricultural sciences (6%), humani-
ties (5%) and medical care (3%). The respondents anonymously and voluntarily filled
in a research set of questionnaires, in both paper and electronic form.
The research battery consisted of the following:
 Aitken Procrastination Inventory by the US psychologist M. Aitken (in: Ferarri
et al., 1995). This one-dimensional inventory consists of 19 items dealing with
procrastination in academic conditions – mainly in preparation for school,
observance of school deadlines and work scheduling. Participants respond to
the items on a 5-point agree/disagree scale. Cronbach’s alpha (0.87) calculated
for our sample indicates sufficient internal consistency of the inventory.
 Inventory of Strategies for Overcoming Procrastination, created by the
authors of this study, with the aim to find out the frequency of individual
strategies used, helping students to overcome the tendency to postpone
their obligations. 22 items of the inventory offer strategies relating to the
activities of planning, tasks scheduling, rewards, communication with fel-
low students, visions of success or failure, reminders setting, etc., which are
rated by respondents on a 5-point frequency scale. Respondents may also
add their own strategies for overcoming procrastination (not mentioned in
the questionnaire) in the last, open item.
 Volitional Regulation questionnaire, compiled for the purpose of a previous
study on the procrastination – self-regulation relationship (Nábělková,
Ledajová, 2013), consisting of 18 items with a 5-point agree/disagree scale.
The total score shows the level of volitional regulation (Cronbach´s alpha
0.86, for our sample), where 5 items refer to the volitional dimension of
decisiveness (Cronbach’s alpha 0.68), 5 items refer to the dimension of
persistence (Cronbach’s alpha 0.56) and 8 items to the dimension of self-
discipline (Cronbach’s alpha 0.78).
112 Eva Nábělková, Jana Ratkovská

 Questionnaire of Achievement Motivation, used as a standardized tool to

measure achievement motivation (Pardel et al., 1992). It captures three
dimensions: achievement motive (including the level of aspiration, effort for
a high social status, persistence, time orientation on the future, etc.), anxiety
hindering achievement (reflecting self-reported lower achievement, lower
readiness and activity when in tension, in critical, stressful and new situ-
ations and anxiety improving achievement (captured by the positive effect
of moderate tension on achievement in terms of mobilization of activity).
Respondents answer by means of a 4-point scale by the degree of relevance
of a particular item for themselves.
The data were statistically processed using the SPSS software. Whereas the
distribution of the most of the studied variables significantly differed from the
normal distribution (tested by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test), Spearman’s non-
parametric correlation coefficient was used. Answers to the open items of the
Inventory of Strategies for Overcoming Procrastination were categorized by content
analysis.

Research Results

Within the first research question we asked about the most frequently used
strategies for overcoming procrastination. University students indicated the fre-
quency of their use of each of the 22 offered strategies on a scale from 0 (never)
to 4 (always). It can be stated that socially oriented strategies (social motivation,
social encouragement), positive approach (positive attitude, vision of success in
the future and/or in the past), and scheduling for a suitable time seem to be
used the most frequently. Table 1 shows the first ten strategies for overcoming
procrastination, indicated, on average, as the most frequent by our respondents.
Within the open item, 25 respondents wrote about their own strategies for
overcoming procrastination. Categories of these strategies are shown in Table 2
with specific examples.

Table 2. Strategies for overcoming procrastination suggested by respondents (N=25)

Categories of strategies Content – specific examples Frequency
Planning activities (work “Schedule time intervals for work and breaks.” 6
list and schedule) ”During weekend – updating the things necessary for
a given week, checking the list from the previous week.”
Academic Procrastination and Factors Contributing to Its Overcoming 113

Categories of strategies Content – specific examples Frequency

Social motivation and “Agreement with friends on doing the work together, 4
co-operation mutual support.”
Non-distracting condi- “Working alone, undisturbed.” 3
tions “Ensuring absolute silence (e.g. earplugs).”
Urgency “Doing everything in the morning.” 2
“Trying to do all tasks as soon as possible, and then
relax”.
Vision of unpleasant “Vision of failure, stress and doing the activity again.” 2
consequences
Inner satisfaction “Work well done.” “Praise.” 2
Positive visions “Vision of easy progress of the task.” “Belief in the ability 2
to do the task.”
Work under pressure “Stress inspires better outcomes.” 2
Financial reward 1

The second research question concerned the relationship between academic

procrastination and volitional regulation, or its dimensions. The calculated cor-
relation coefficients indicate that there are relatively highly statistically significant
negative relationships between procrastination and the overall volitional regula-
tion, as well as the dimension of self-discipline. Academic procrastination shows
moderately close negative relations also with the volitional dimensions of decisive-
ness and persistence. Results of the correlation analysis concerning the second
research question are presented in Table 3.

Table 3: Correlation Coefficients for Academic Procrastination

and Volitional Regulation and/or its Dimensions (N=174)
Volitional regulation Decisiveness Persistence Self-discipline
R -0.51** -0.28** -0.39** -0.58**

* p<0.001

Finally, the third research question dealt with how academic procrastination is
related to the dimensions of achievement motivation. According to the results of
the correlation analysis, there is a significant moderately close negative relation-
ship between procrastination and the achievement motive. As for anxiety, the anxi-
ety hindering achievement is essentially unrelated to procrastination, but a weak,
nevertheless statistically significant positive relationship was recorded between
114 Eva Nábělková, Jana Ratkovská

procrastination and the anxiety improving achievement. Results of the correlation

analysis concerning the third research question are summarized in Table 4.

Table 4: Correlation Coefficients for Academic Procrastination and Dimensions

of Achievement Motivation (N=174)
Achievement Anxiety improving Anxiety hindering
motive achievement achievement
R -0.29** -0.20* -0.10

* p<0.001; ** p<0.01

Discussion

Based on the study on scientific literature as well as on specific experience of

university students, a research tool was designed, including various strategies for
overcoming procrastination, which our respondents were asked to assess in terms
of the frequency of their use. The most frequent strategies found in the Slovak
university students participating in our research are confronted with professional
intervention and counselling theses of foreign authors within the discussion.
It can be stated that the so-called social motivation including co-operation
in a group and contact with people working on a similar task proved to be the
most frequently used strategy. Students probably need to make sure of their
situation and to compare it with the situation of others within their study group.
The other frequent way of overcoming academic procrastination was receiving
social encouragement from close persons. Similar socially-oriented strategies are
also used within foreign intervention programmes focused on procrastination
(Schouwenburg et al., 2004).
According to several authors (Ramsay, 2002; Pychyl, Binder, 2004), optimism,
elimination of negative thinking, and strengthening of perceived self-efficacy
are the basis for overcoming obstacles in the fulfilment of academic tasks and
obligations. Also within our research, the students indicated a positive attitude and
vision of success as frequently used strategies for overcoming procrastination. In
general, it can be stated that people embark on a goal-directed activity and persist
in their effort to achieve the goal if they are sufficiently sure that they will succeed.
Successful studying requires, among other things, skills in planning, organi-
zation of study, and/or time management. Within our research, the students
indicated planning and embarking on an activity without any delay and/or in
a suitable time as other frequent strategies for overcoming procrastination. This,
Academic Procrastination and Factors Contributing to Its Overcoming 115

again, corresponds to the recommendations of the authors dealing with procras-

tination, who emphasize regularity of work, effective time management, control of
disturbing stimuli, and the need not to undervalue the time required to finish the
task (Ferrari et al., 1995; Schouwenburg et al., 2004). Strategic planning of study,
optimum time scheduling and effective management of obligations are also greatly
emphasised within intervention programmes focused on academic procrastina-
tion (Topman et al., 2004; Pychyl, Binder, 2004).
When looking for protective factors in relation to academic procrastination, it
was assumed that the level of procrastination would decrease with the increase in
volitional regulation. Since volition can be described as a conscious effort mobi-
lizing energy and directed to overcoming obstacles, it can be expected that the
level of volitional regulation will be lower in procrastinators when compared with
non-procrastinators. Our results confirm this assumption. We found a negative
relationship between academic procrastination and the overall volitional regula-
tion as well as its partial dimensions. This relationship was the strongest for the
dimension of self-discipline; it was relatively strong also for persistence. The nega-
tive correlation of academic procrastination with self-discipline and persistence
(although less strong) had been found in the university students also within one
of our previous studies (Nábělková, Ledajová, 2013). However, in that research – as
opposed to this one – no negative relationship between academic procrastination
and decisiveness was proved. The connection of the level of procrastination with
indecision, found in this research, may be theoretically supported by the existence
of the specific type of the so-called decisional procrastination, consisting in an
individual’s inability to make a decision within a specified time (Ferrari et al, 1995).
Within another of our previous studies on procrastination and decision-making
styles (Nábělková et al., 2009) a positive relationship between trait procrastination
and shifting responsibility for a decision and postponing a decision had been also
found empirically. According to our findings, all the three dimensions of volitional
regulation (self-discipline, persistence and decisiveness) can thus be considered
predictors of a lower tendency to procrastinate in academic conditions.
The results of our research indicated a  negative relation between academic
procrastination and the achievement motive. Despite the fact that this relation is
of lesser strength than the relationships found between self-discipline and persis-
tence, it is also a provable and statistically significant one. Several authors (Ferrari
et al., 1995; Lee, 2005; Steel, 2007) consider academic procrastination as a problem
of motivation, or associate it with low achievement motivation. L. Pašková (2008)
specifically indicates that individuals with a high level of the achievement motive
proceed more effectively with their work on various tasks, need less time for the
116 Eva Nábělková, Jana Ratkovská

tasks and more rarely give up when solving them. Within our previous research
on procrastination and coping strategies in university students (Nábělková, Rend-
veiová, 2009) a significantly higher tendency to disengaged behaviour, which is
a logical opposite of the high level of the achievement motive, was empirically
determined in procrastinators in comparison with non-procrastinators.
Despite the fact that – based on the existing models of procrastination
(Solomon, Rothblum, 1984; Milgram, Tenne, 2000) – we expected a relationship
between academic procrastination and anxiety hindering achievement; no such
relationship was proved in our research. On the other hand, our results proved
a positive relationship between procrastination and anxiety improving achieve-
ment. Also “work under pressure”, to which the student attributed stimulation for
better performance, appeared among the answers to the open question regard-
ing one’s own strategies for overcoming procrastination. J.F. Ferrari et al. (1995)
defined, in addition to other types of procrastination, also the so-called arousal
procrastination, where certain anxiety (particularly time anxiety) causes thrill and
the generated tension has an activating effect on the procrastinator. However, we
do not consider the strategy as optimal, since the final outcome of the “work under
pressure” can be under the real potentiality of procrastinators.

Conclusion

So far, in Slovakia there has only been a very little research interest in the phe-
nomenon of procrastination and systematic application of existing knowledge
in the educational practice was practically non-existent, although there are some
thematic overlaps, e.g., with the issue of learning styles, in which one component is
the approach to learning (Kaliská, 2013). The results of our study contribute to the
issue of academic procrastination in our cultural context by confirming the nega-
tive relationship between academic procrastination and volitional regulation and
the achievement motive, as well as the empirical evidence of real applicability of
some strategies for overcoming procrastination. Further research is recommended
in the area, since understanding academic procrastination may facilitate practical
interventions not only by students, but also by competent professionals.
Academic Procrastination and Factors Contributing to Its Overcoming 117

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