Hidden Function of Procrastination: When We Fail To Process

“Time is the longest distance between two places.”
― Tennessee Williams

Procrastination is one of those psychological quirks that hardly need an introduction. For those craving a textbook definition, it’s the voluntary delay in starting or finishing important tasks, despite knowing that this delay will likely lead to negative consequences (Steel, 2007). It seems like procrastination is becoming more prevalent these days. I am not sure if it is increased awareness, modern life’s demands, or a mix of both, but it is everywhere. I see it more in my therapy clients and, frustratingly, in myself. I never used to struggle to get s**t done. In fact, I often had to put the brakes on and slow down. I would be that person pestering others to get stuff done. So, what has changed? Have I just become old ‘n lazy?

Even though that may be one possible explanation for my increased procrastination, I doubt it fully explains the random and enduring nature of its onset. I know people change, but I cannot see how my conscientious nature just seemed to have turned against itself. So, what gives?

When I turn to research on procrastination, we know that as with most psychological things — it is complex. Why one person procrastinates is very different from the next. For example, personality traits play a key influential role in people’s proclivity to procrastinate. Those who tend to be more conscientious will struggle less with procrastination than someone who scores high on impulsivity. Surprisingly, traits like agreeableness and neuroticism don’t seem to affect procrastination much. From the research, it is also evident that various factors contribute to our tendency to procrastinate.

For instance, research shows that people tend to procrastinate less as they age. So, this actually rules out my theory of becoming old ‘n lazy. If anything, I should be procrastinating less as I get older. Then there is perfectionism and fear of failure. Studies show a strong link between fear of failure and procrastination. Fear of failure is a hallmark of perfectionism, which has been rising in recent years, likely leading to more procrastination.

Other factors that influence procrastination are the complexity of a task and its associated emotional charge. Research shows that people tend to engage in procrastination to avoid negative feelings (e.g., anxiety, boredom) associated with a task, or because the task seems too complex and ambiguous, lacking any clear starting point.

While all of this evidence seems fairly explanatory and valid, I often wonder if we are missing something by trying to view our tendency to procrastinate as all “bad”. What if this increased procrastination is actually adaptive? What if we procrastinate to help us not harm us? Maybe we procrastinate to protect ourselves, not to sabotage ourselves.

This idea challenges the traditional definition of procrastination, but this is my theoretical postulation on procrastination namely, adaptive processing. I believe we have lost our ability to process information which, in turn, often leads to procrastination. We no longer engage in mundane activities that allow us to process emotional and intellectual content. Previously, faced with a tough task, you might take a break to garden, cook, or play with your kids. During this “nonproductive time” (what we would now call procrastination), you were actually processing the task mentally, trying different approaches before tackling it. The same goes for emotional processing. Doing seemingly mundane tasks helps us process. Even tidying up can be a form of processing!

Unfortunately, today’s world robs us of this. We are constantly interrupted by endless distractions. There is always that one bloody WhatsApp to reply to or some unanswered email or the temptation to order food instead of cooking, which used to bring us joy. We no longer sit with our kids because they too are overwhelmed with their own workloads, or we get distracted by our own mental to-do lists.

I believe that harmful procrastination should be differentiatedfrom adaptive processing. I think it is important that we acknowledge when are we actually procrastinating and when we are just emotionally and mentally too drained to start the things that we want to do because we have failed to process previously absorbed information. In other words, we lack the capacity, not just the willpower, motivation, or performance, to do the work.

Ultimately, understanding procrastination requires a shift in perspective. Instead of viewing procrastination as a mere moral failure on our behalf, perhaps we should consider its underlying message. By recognising when we need to process rather than mindlessly label ourselves as procrastinators, we can approach our tasks with greater clarity and compassion. Maybe, just maybe, procrastination is our mind’s way of telling us to slow down and truly reconnect with ourselves and the world around us.

Now I just need to actually research this theory, right?

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