Everyone experienced this. You are sitting at workplace, for example, office, have a lot to do and can’t push yourself to stars or continue the job. You drink coffee, arrange folders on the table, clear browser history – perform useful, but not urgent actions.
If it happens time-to-time – you just need to get some rest or change activity. But if this your permanent condition – you suffer from procrastination.
Procrastination is manifested in the fact that the person being aware of the need to fulfill very specific important cases, ignore this need and diverts attention to household stuff or entertainment. Psychologists often define procrastination as a mechanism for dealing with anxiety associated with the undertaking or completion of any cases, decision-making.
In one way or another this condition familiar to most people, and is considered the norm to a certain level. But procrastination becomes a problem when converted to “normal” state, in which a person spends most of the time. Such a person puts all important “for later”, and when it turns out that all the deadlines have already passed, or simply refuses planned, or is trying to do all deferred “jerk” for unrealistically short period of time.
Chronic procrastination may be caused by the hidden psychological or physiological illnesses.
The theories of procrastination:
1. Anxiety
According to this theory, the only and main reason for procrastination is a feeling of anxiety, stress. One source of stress is the fear of the future: person is worried that he could not perform the important work and will not live up to expectations, and therefore unconsciously trying to delay the moment when it is necessary to present the results.
2. Self-restraint
According to this theory, procrastinator restricts itself from the subconscious fear of becoming a successful, stand out from the masses and to show themselves better than others (by becoming, for example, possible to subject excessive demands, criticism, envy).
3. Disobedience (the spirit of contradiction)
According to this theory, we are irritated by imposed roles, programs, plans, and we put the case to demonstrate (to others, leadership, world), our independence and ability to act in accordance with our own decisions.Thus, the “rebels”, the anarchists spend their entire lives to prove their independence from public opinion that makes them slaves to the idea; as a result, their activities are limited to the generation of ideas.
4. Theory of temporary motivation
According to this theory, the level of procrastination is lower, the greater the expectations of job and the more valuable the results to person. And procrastination is higher, the less persistent performer and more distant the goal (the closer the target, the harder we work). In other words, the best work is done when we have relation to it, there are high expectations and personal interest, and the time to achieve is minimized.
How do you think, what theory is the most feasible? Write in comments!
