CLINICAL INTERVENTIONS AND RESEARCH

"Procrastination is one of the minor human miseries affecting about a quarter of the population" (Ellis and Knaus 1973)

Procrastination can manifest itself as a dysfunctional and maladaptive behavior which results in unhappiness, task failure or guilt(Ferrari 1995). It can cause great personal stress and is correlated with negative school performance, life dissatisfaction and anxiety (McCown and Johnson 1989 as cited by Ferrari 1995). Procrastination is also associated with severe psychological disturbances and/or substance abuse which require clinical intervention. Clinical techniques should only be used by a competent clinical psychologist. If you are feeling concerned or upset about your procrastination please contact your local doctor.

Research

To date, there is relatively little literature regarding the outcome data for the clinical treatments of procrastination. The research too often uses only small samples. Furthermore, most studies are not longitudinal and do not account for diverse populations. Much of the data is often based on clinical experience and anecdotal evidence.

Ferrari writes that most existing treatments are barely meaningful clinically (Ferrari 1995) and recommends a procedure called "Doing it now". Current research however, has been able to consistently distinguish clear differences between people who have undergone treatment as compared to the results of control groups and to simple study skills workshops.

Clinical

The etiology(causes) of procrastination varies from poor habits to serious disorders. If procrastination behaviors emerge suddenly, it may suggest a more serious physiological disorder. It may mask the base rates of other diseases or the onset of more serious psychiatric syndromes such as manic depression. Procrastination is also associated with personality disorders and anxiety and can become a serious maladaptive behavior pattern. Also long-suffering, chronic procrastinators may have developed compensatory behaviors which affect their work, relationships and other areas of their lives. It's important to administer a full assessment of the history and longevity of the disorder especially in the case of non-students.

There are different treatment strategies and lengths of intervention depending on the causes of procrastination. More often, especially with regard to students and less serious cases, a cognitive-behavioral approach is recommended. Serious cases, as experienced generally by adults, may benefit from more insight oriented psycho dynamic approaches. The anxiety associated with procrastination can also be treated separately through relaxation or the use of drugs.

Main References

McCown W. & Johnson J. (1989a) Validation of an adult inventory of procrastination Paper presented at the society for Personality assessment, New York.

Ferrari, J.R., Johnson, J.L., & McCown, W.G. (1995). Procrastination and task avoidance. New York, N.Y.: Plenum Press.

For further information you can contact:

To Internet mental health resources., To the etiology(causes) and symptoms of procrastination, To a procedure of how to treat procrastination, To a taxonomy of therapies and associated therapeutic techniques, To research references, To interventions page , To main procrastination research home page.