Personality correlates of decisional and task avoidant procrastination

Abstract

Newly constructed scales of decisional procrastination were validated as a precondition for assessing similarities and differences between decisional and task avoidant procrastination. The two behavioral dispositions and their concomitant affective reactions (tension during decision making and discomfort about postponing tasks, respectively) were found to be independent. Each disposition was general rather than specific with a high inter-correlation of indecisiveness on matters of minor as well as major importance and a high inter-correlation of postponing life routines as well as postponing academic assignments. Two of the five Costa–McCrae personality factors accounted for most of the explained variance in the two kinds of procrastination, Neuroticism for decisional procrastination and Conscientiousness for task avoidance procrastination, respectively. These findings were consistent with theoretical formulations by Lazarus (Appraisal–Anxiety–Avoidance Model) and Kuhl (Action Control Theory). Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.