Content area
Full text
Whether individuals actually engage in procrastination depends on different factors (e.g., personality, temporal and situational prerequisites). In order to assess behavioral procrastination adequately, delays that qualify as procrastination must be differentiated from other forms of delay. We therefore developed the ecological momentary assessment of procrastination scale (e-MAPS). This five-item short scale was applied in an experience sampling study with 80 participants. Exploring the factorial structure of the e-MAPS revealed that the items cover two latent components, supporting the preconception that situational determinants and cognitive-affective appraisals are equally relevant to identify delays that qualify as procrastination. Preliminary evidence showed that delay patterns were assessed reliably. Associations between established selfreport scales of procrastination and aggregate frequencies of behavioral procrastination, assessed by the e-MAPS, support convergent validity. We conclude that the e-MAPS will foster research on time and context dependent processes involved in the occurrence of procrastination.
Procrastination is a well-known phenomenon defined as "the voluntary, irrational postponement of an intended course of action despite the knowledge that this delay will come at a cost to or have negative effects on the individual" (Simpson & Pychyl, 2009, p. 906; see also Ferrari, Johnson, & McCown, 1995). International prevalence rates reveal that up to 28% of the adult general population chronically engages in procrastinatory behavior (Ferrari, Díaz-Moralez, O'Callaghan, Díaz, & Argumedo, 2007). According to estimates, 20% to 70% of university students procrastinate in study-related tasks (academic procrastination) on a regular basis (Day, Mensink, & O'Sullivan, 2000; Schouwenburg, 2004; Solomon & Rothblum, 1984). Moreover, the frequent engagement in (academic) procrastination is associated with deficiencies in academic performance, heightened stress levels, depressive symptoms, anxiety, social conflicts, and decreased overall life satisfaction or physical wellbeing (Beutel et al., 2016; Grunschel, Patrzek, & Fries, 2013a; Klassen, Krawchuk, & Rajani, 2008; Sirois, Melia-Gordon, & Pychyl, 2003; Solomon & Rothblum, 1984; Tice & Baumeister, 1997). Therefore, empirical evidence consistently shows that frequent or excessive engagement in procrastination is maladaptive (Ferrari, 2010).
Prone to procrastinate
Research on the causes and consequences of procrastination typically aggregated scores of self-report measures to assess participants' average tendency to engage in dilatory behavior (Ferrari et al., 1995; Steel, 2007; Van Eerde, 2003). The conception that procrastination is not only connected with certain personality characteristics (Ferrari & Emmons, 1995; Johnson...