Mind and behavior · 1 min read
More procrastination went along with more stress and less satisfaction
More than 2,500 people in Germany reported how much they procrastinated. Younger people did so more, and the survey cannot show what causes what.
The study, in plain language
Many studies of procrastination have included only students. This time, interviewers visited households and asked people of different ages how much they put off tasks, how much stress they felt, and how they rated different areas of their lives.
People who said they procrastinated more also tended to report more stress, more anxiety and depression symptoms, and more fatigue. Life satisfaction went in the opposite direction. Procrastination scores were highest among people ages 14 to 29.
This is a broad but static snapshot: procrastination and feeling overwhelmed tend to coincide, at work and elsewhere in life, but the survey cannot say which one drives the other.
The key idea
From ages 14 to 95, more procrastination went along with more distress and less life satisfaction.
Something to think about
If you have been putting something off, it may also be worth noticing how much fatigue or stress you are carrying. The survey only shows that they go together, not that one causes the other.
The original study
Procrastination, Distress and Life Satisfaction across the Age Range – A German Representative Community Study
Source under CC BY 4.0. English adaptation and explanation by PaperFlow, with AI assistance. The text has been reorganized for a general audience; it is not the complete paper and does not imply endorsement by its authors.
One study alone does not represent a field's consensus. Educational content does not replace professional advice. Report a possible error.