Relationships Between Academic Motivation, Self-Efficacy, and Academic Procrastination

COPYRIGHT 2014 BY PSI CHI, THE INTERNATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY IN PSYCHOLOGY (VOL. 19, NO. 4/ISSN 2164-8204) In schools and the workplace, procrastination can be defined as freely postponing an action with the awareness of the detriment it may cause in the future (Steel, 2007). Procrastination is a widespread problem that is expected to increase in prevalence due to less controlling management strategies (Steel, 2007). Trends toward a decrease in occupational structure and direction with an increase in workplace temptation (e.g., computer games, text messaging) gives individuals numerous opportunities to procrastinate. Negative effects of procrastination can arise in multiple contexts. Along with failure to complete certain goals or tasks on time, procrastinating can cause a person disappointment and can lead to interpersonal problems if family or social responsibilities are unfulfilled (e.g., relying on others, letting people down, falling short of family expectations; Andreou, 2007). As organizations become progressively more lenient, the responsibility of performing tasks on time and with efficiency falls more fully on the specific worker.