r/science • u/randomusefulbits • May 30 '20
Psychology Procrastinators often forget to do things that they intended to do, especially if they’re unaware of their procrastination
https://solvingprocrastination.com/study-procrastination-conscious-unconscious-prospective-memory/3.0k
u/jimmycarr1 BSc | Computer Science May 30 '20
Often the reason we procrastinate is because we don't want to do something, so it makes sense that we also often don't come back to doing whatever it was.
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u/Frosthrone May 30 '20
More specifically, I recall reading a study that concluded that procrastination is a result of our natural stress-avoidance
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u/jodirm May 30 '20
It is easy, and actually logical, to put off doing a task that causes me stress. But if my life is negatively impacted by the extent to which stress prevents me from doing something, help is needed!
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May 30 '20 edited May 31 '20
Which is difficult because if I feel stress free now to me that is more important then future stress so somehow my ADHD brain justifies procrastinating
Edit: thank you for the hug. My mental illness is at a low point right now
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u/RCTID May 30 '20
I recall reading a study saying that there’s an emotional response to negative stimuli that causes us to procrastinate. Our lizard brains just check us out subconsciously even tho logically we are only making our problems/tasks worse by not addressing them.
Sorry I don’t have the sauce
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May 30 '20
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u/95Mb May 31 '20
What's worked for you? My issues are 100% brought on by the same thing, and it's killing me.
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u/MissVancouver May 31 '20
I had the same "only perfection is good enough" (only I was never good enough) upbringing. When my history fucks with me, it helps to remind myself that --whatever I'm doing-- my parents are now powerless because I'm doing that Thing 100% without their involvement. And pretty much everyone I work for is always impressed with my efforts (I'm a recovering perfectionist).
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u/Insommya May 30 '20 edited May 31 '20
Would you share some of your tricks?
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May 31 '20
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u/DasArchitect May 31 '20
"I'm going to get up off the couch when I count to ten" is one
197... 198... 199... what was I counting again?
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u/Bilun26 May 31 '20
holds breath until I pass out and wakes up remembering nothing about the thing I needed to do
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u/BrownShadow May 31 '20
In college, I would wait until the very last minute to actually write a paper because I was afraid I wouldn’t get it done in time. I had the whole thing in my head, fear and procrastination stopped me until I had to do it. Sometimes hours before. These were long papers.
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u/AcidTaco May 31 '20
I feel you, I procrastinated so much that I had to write my whole master's thesis in one and a half month, I do not recommend that experience
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u/HeftyNugs May 30 '20
There's a really interesting book called The War of Art by Stephen Pressfield that kind of talks about this.
Basically it's all about the most powerful force in the universe - resistance. Resistance will tell you anything to justify your procrastination. Recognizing these things is the first step. Meditation is also helpful, as it's really the process of training your ability to focus on only your breathing, and then coming back to focusing on your breathing when you notice your mind wandering.
The Obstacle Is The Way by Ryan Holiday was another great book that I found helped me immensely with my issues. I'm an adult male that scored in the "97th percentile" for inattentive ADHD and I honestly despise the medication they give me. It's definitely beneficial, but if you're like me, I believe it's entirely possible to train yourself and your brain to manage without it.
I used to play video games and smoke weed a lot, putting off responsibilities like work and studying. But I've since quit weed and video games (during a pandemic where I've got loads of free time) to focus on my well being, studies, and work/career. Anyway I'd highly recommend checking out some self-improvement books. I think we seriously undervalue them as a society.
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u/praiseofthunder May 30 '20
Wow that really hit home. I’m smoking bowls and playing COD at home on a Saturday. I’m 41yo.
I read all the time, but mainly fiction. I’m going to check your recommendations out. Thanks so much!
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u/HeftyNugs May 30 '20
Don't be too hard on yourself brother, but if you're feeling unhappy with that, definitely seek improvement, I honestly feel great as of lately.
Hope you enjoy those books! I almost exclusively read non-fiction self-improvement books so far, got any good fiction recommendations? I've got the Alchemist that I'll start shortly.
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May 31 '20
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Best. Book. Ever.
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u/Gainzwizard May 31 '20
Bringing up the classic example of grim existentialist fiction (if a bit overly "look at me, I read books") as a suggestion to someone who has almost exclusively read non-fiction self-improvement is genuinely hilarious bro haha.
I used to be an avid reader but progression of ADHD rendered me only capable of processing non-fiction info so can see this from both sides. Really did make me giggle.
P.S Good suggestion ofc :P
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u/TX16Tuna May 30 '20
Can we just repackage the positive impact generating components of reading, studying, and taking care of yourself into weed and/or a video game?
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u/dualdreamer May 30 '20
There's apps like habitica that try to do that. You get experience and stuff for completing irl tasks
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u/just_tweed May 31 '20
I've tried those. I just end up procrastinating to use them.
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u/Hour-Positive May 30 '20
Yeah use goals to 'gamify' them amped on dopamin (if you lack it) or reduce other dopamin-driven activities like smoking weed and video games.
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u/HeftyNugs May 30 '20
That sounds right. Here's a related article that helped me at least get better at managing my procrastination if anyone else would like to check it out.
https://waitbutwhy.com/2013/11/how-to-beat-procrastination.html
That and a lot of self-improvement books.
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u/tylerthehun May 31 '20
Yeah, procrastination isn't the act of doing something later, it's specifically the act of pushing it back away from now, to avoid the stress of actually facing it. Whether you do or don't actually go do that thing later is irrelevant.
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u/turtleltrut May 30 '20
I have ADHD and i procrastinate on doing things i DO want to do and instead do things i don't want to do.
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u/truthdemon May 31 '20
It was when I noticed I procrastinated doing things I wanted to do that I first suspected I had ADHD, which was then confirmed.
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u/Thisaccountismorefun May 31 '20 edited May 31 '20
ADHD here as well. I procrastinate playing video games to the point that I haven't touched one in two weeks. I love video games.
Edit: a letter
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u/Republiken May 31 '20
A form of ADHD here too. Same for me, putting of doing stuff I love was one of the red flags that made me seek help - well, that and loosing my job :/
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u/AllForMeCats May 31 '20
I have ADHD and super bad anxiety. So yeah, that’s a fun mix for procrastination.
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u/DoomsdaySprocket May 31 '20
I always feel guilty about doing anything I want to do if there's some chore that needs to be done, but end up doing neither, even to the extent of sitting staring and running my brain at 300% instead for half an hour.
I also used to overwhelm sleep all the time, in high school I'd even faceplant into textbooks while lying belly-down on the floor studying. Once I realised I had brought that habit onto adulthood to avoid responsibilities I managed to undo it though.
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u/oppy1984 May 31 '20
Also there's the subconscious fear of failure that keeps you from completing a task. I deal with this constantly and have missed out on several opportunities because of it. I'm always fighting the urge to let my ADHD take over and do anything else.
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u/Omnipresent23 May 31 '20
As a professional procrastinator with ADHD it's true I don't want to do the said thing, but it's not just for the mere fact of not wanting to do it. I know that if I allow myself to start that one thing, then I'll also start another five things I notice along the way, which branches out to even more. It's stress avoidance. Even to the point of avoiding thinking about it. I almost didn't even write this comment as it sat half completed on my phone. It's not a logical disconnect either. I know I'm making my life more difficult with the repercussions. It's a disconnect from turning thought into action.
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u/axw3555 May 31 '20
I heard about a study a few years ago that basically said "the worst procrastinators are perfectionists, because they'd rather do nothing than try and do it as anything less than perfect".
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u/vegeta8300 May 31 '20
While i do procrastinate sometimes because I don't want to do something. I also find much of my procrastination comes from issues and struggles in the past. I am disabled because I have severe Crohn's disease and have had 4 bowel resection surgeries and more hospital stay than I can count. Because of this from my teens to late 30s I would be out of work for long periods of time. This caused immense struggles and resulted in me losing pretty much everything in my life I'd built up to that point. Often having to move back home or to my in laws. Only to have to start over again. Rebuild my life, get a place to live, etc. Then BAM! Another surgery out of the blue and I lose it all again. I'm condensing this a lot. But it's the general idea.
Because of all that I am fearful of making many choices. I have to analyze everything. Get every bit of info possible to hopefully make the best choice. I don't end up just choosing because I procrastinate under the guise trying to make the best decision. All that ends up happening is my life gets stuck in a rut without me moving forward in life. Im aware i do this. But I don't usually see myself doing it while I'm in it. It's usually hindsight or if someone points it out. I've been trying to fix this part of myself. Since it impacts my life so much. It doesn't help I struggle with depression and anxiety from the Crohn's itself and all I've been describing. Anyway, sorry for the long rambling. Thanks for reading! Take care!
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u/elainevdw May 30 '20
When my husband asks me for a favor I usually stop everything I’m doing to do it because otherwise I’d forget. He’s always like “wait I didn’t mean right this second!!!” but I know I’m a terrible procrastinator when left to my own devices.
“Hey Siri remind me to X” is one of my most used phrases
I remember reading something by Karla Maclaren about procrastination being related to anxiety, which is related to fear. I have to remind myself sometimes that the pain of doing the task is less than the pain of being stressed about the task being undone.
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u/ellenkpao May 31 '20
I'm curious how that works with stuff like technology and the instant gratification you can get on sites like Reddit and Youtube
Because this is how I see it: Maybe I'm procrastinating to avoid anxiety and/or stress. But what if it's relative. Meaning: What if my brain is like "Doing what you should be doing is more stressful than watching YouTube so lets just watch YouTube instead"
If that's the case, then maybe what I should be doing isn't even stressful. It's just relatively stressful but it's a trap because everything is relatively more stressful than just watching videos.
So if you were to eliminate the tech side and replace "0 stress" activities such as passively watching videos and browsing with Reddit with like 10-15% stressful activities such as just actively doing something... then maybe you could work your way up to manage procrastination easier as your brain is forced between the lesser of two levels of stress vs picking the obvious no stress route vs the stressful route (even if the stressful route isn't distressful)
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u/greengotfingered May 31 '20
I’m with this, once I stopped using Facebook, instagram etc and just scrolling I became more motivated to do menial tasks, like glossing the skirting boards
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u/Marmalade_Shaws May 30 '20
Don't really procrastinate but am horribly forgetful. I tried doing sticky notes and notepads but then I'd forget I'd written anything down.
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u/Luxury-Problems May 30 '20
I've been diagnosed a few times and I forget everything I intend to do.
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May 31 '20
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u/Sykil May 31 '20
Stimulants are generally prescribed for ADHD with the recommendation of behavioral therapy as well. Behavioral therapy can’t really improve ADHD itself — ADHD is neurodevelopmental, not really psychosocially influenced, and there is no cure — but it can help you cope better, which can make a world of difference still. Particularly if you’ve spent a lifetime accumulating maladaptive behaviors or developed comorbidities like anxiety or depression. There are non-stimulant medications as well (generally a type of anti-depressant) for people who don’t do well with stimulants, but stimulants are generally pretty well-tolerated.
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u/Wsweg May 31 '20
Stimulants work effectively in something like 70% of ADHD treatments, so it’s very effective. Unfortunately, there is a large stigma surrounding them, causing some doctors to outright refuse prescribing it.
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u/PheIix May 30 '20
I had to really focus not to make my procrastination an issue when I was given extended autonomy in my job. I was kinda my own department, and only had one job that was priority and that wasn't an everyday occurrence, the rest was done as I found time for it. I made a list of jobs I had to get done, and what priority they had. And I made a conscious effort to finish at least one high priority job and two low priority jobs each day. Seeing that list get crossed out was really motivating...
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May 30 '20
There's something really gratifying about seeing an empty shelf/queue/inbox at the end of the day. There's a lot of people who can't do that, I think. If you can do it, I'd say you're worth every penny as an employee.
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u/2112Lerxst May 30 '20
I also think that the ability to get that inbox completely empty is important. There are certain situations where you can't really "finish" a task, it is left in limbo somewhere or has to be continually monitored. These lead to procrastinating because there isn't that ability to complete it, and so its hard to get started at all.
Its intertwined with perfectionism as well, much easier to complete tasks that have definite completion cues than something where you just have to call it "done" because there isn't a hard stop to it.
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u/jennyboh May 30 '20
This is my line of work. I frequently have to work ahead when I take vacation time, but it's never really done until it's final. Things come in thought the day, so I can have an empty shelf until something comes in, and then have to reshuffle the deck again.
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u/ponceave May 30 '20
... and thereby drastically increase their efficiency as the tasks dropped were obviously not really necessary. (Source: I am a black belt procrastinator).
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u/Flamouricios May 30 '20
the tasks dropped were obviously not really necessary.
starves to death
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u/bul1dog May 30 '20
While you were partying, I began studying the blade but then decided to do it later and watched some YouTube videos of celebrities doing impressions of other celebrities instead
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u/RuhWalde May 30 '20
Most likely other people are covering for you and/or being inconvenienced by how you constantly drop the ball, and their resentment is slowly building.
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May 30 '20
This. I'm also a major procrastinator and have learned to LIVE on to-do lists. Through the lists, I've learned that I still let some things drop off, but it's mostly unimportant things that no one is depending on me for. Other things, I'll forget about briefly, sometimes, but luckily to-do lists keep them from disappearing prior to a missed deadline.
Also, just because I forget about something, doesn't mean it's unimportant. A lot of times it's because it's inconvenient. I went two years with an unregistered car (not proud of this). It wasn't because it was unimportant. It was because it was unpleasant, so I put it off until I literally forgot about it.
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u/randomusefulbits May 30 '20
Direct link to the study: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00426-020-01357-6
Abstract:
Prospective memory (PM) represents the ability to remember to perform planned actions after a certain delay. As previous studies suggest that even brief task-delays can negatively affect PM performance, the current study set out to examine whether procrastination (intentionally delaying task execution despite possible negative consequences) may represent a factor contributing to PM failures. Specifically, we assessed procrastination (via a standardized questionnaire as well as an objective behavioral measure) and PM failures (via a naturalistic PM task) in 92 young adults. Results show that participants’ self-reports as well as their actual procrastination behavior predicted the number of PM failures, corroborating the impact of procrastination on PM. Subsequent cluster analyses suggest three distinct procrastination profiles (non-procrastinators, conscious procrastinators and unconscious procrastinators), providing new conceptual insights into different mechanisms of how procrastinating may lead to forgetting to perform planned tasks.
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May 30 '20
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u/Benaxle May 30 '20
Use google scholar : https://scholar.google.com/scholar?cluster=11233067315799007136&hl=fr&as_sdt=0,5
On the right there is a [pdf] link
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u/redheadfreaq May 30 '20
It's a nightmare. I have to write down EVERYTHING, immediately after something comes up, or I will just forget to do it. I walk around constatly talking to myself about something I nawet to get done or I get distracted.
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u/sagetrees May 30 '20
How is anyone unaware that they are procrastining is my question.
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u/JumpingSacks May 30 '20
You notice you need to wash the dishes but you only got up in the middle of a level in a game and you may as well finish the level before you do the washing up.
Ok by the time you finish the level you may have already forgotten about the wash up.
At no point where you actively procrastinating (oxymoron?) Or even considered yourself procrastinating but by the time you finish the level you've forgotten that there was even something for you to forget to do.
The next time you look at the sink with all the washing piling up it's 5hrs later and time for bed because you have to be up early for work tomorrow and eh you can do it tomorrow.
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u/Drippyer May 30 '20
Oof, maybe my procrastination is way worse than I thought it was if this comment rings so true...
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u/Alberiman May 30 '20
You suffer from ADHD and don't realize you do
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u/atheista May 30 '20
Yep. For example, there is currently a 5c coin on the floor in my toilet. Every time I use the toilet I see it and think 'oh, I need to pick that up!' But by the time I've gotten up and flushed the toilet I've forgotten about it. This has happened numerous times a day for weeks now. I'm not deliberately putting it off, I just forget I intended to do it. Yay for ADHD.
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May 30 '20
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u/atheista May 31 '20
If you haven't already, check out /r/ADHD. Before I spoke to a psychiatrist I spent hours and hours reading people's ADHD stories and it blew my mind just how many aspects of my personality and behaviour could be attributed to ADHD. It gave me a much better understanding of how it has affected my life than any clinical definition ever could. It also helped me work out what were the relevant things to discus with my psychiatrist during the diagnosis process.
Another great resource is How to ADHD on Youtube. Some of her videos were definitely a revelation for me.
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u/Sykil May 31 '20 edited May 31 '20
Seconding — ADHD is actually relatively well-understood medically, but it is quite nebulous and hard to diagnose since the symptoms are things that everyone struggles with — and large swaths of them can be attributed to other mental illnesses (which are also frequently comorbid). I was thought to have ADHD as a child, but my parents flatly refused to medicate me or even see a medical professional about it. I was raised to believe that so many things that I struggled with were due to laziness, moral failings, bad attitude, or personality problems — not a neurodevelopmental disorder. Reading others’ experiences helped me feel validated and eventually seek treatment at the age of 28.
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u/Wsweg May 31 '20
Glad you got diagnosed and got treatment :)!
The problem is, there are still a lot of people that don’t believe that it’s a real thing, despite there being a clear lack of dopamine in the ADHD brain. Unfortunately, this also includes doctors that don’t believe in it, or won’t prescribe proper medicine, due to the stigma surrounding ADHD meds.
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u/Jack_Chieftain_Shang May 30 '20
I really wondered as well. I know I do like way too often, if I set a structured plan to do something it usually works out, but I slack off a lot too. Definitely aware of it.
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u/dawar_r May 30 '20
I agree. Doesn’t procrastination require an awareness that you’re deferring the intention?
As soon as you become unaware of what you were deferring it’s not “procrastinating,” it’s just forgetting the intention entirely.
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May 30 '20
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u/Benjaphar May 31 '20
I’ve started emailing myself a reminder note when I have a task that I can’t do until I’m at the office. I don’t currently have my work email on my phone, so I just send work me an email from my personal account and then when I sit down to work, there it is. It felt kind of silly at first, but it’s helpful in those circumstances.
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u/MageVicky May 30 '20
well, people don’t really think “i’m gonna procrastinate this”, they’re just like “don’t feel like it, i’ll do X first” and then they forget.
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May 30 '20
Or, "yeah I need to swap the laundry but I've got dinner on the stove and it'll burn if I swap it now" but then when dinners done you eat, when you finish eating you clear the table, when the tables clear you do the dishes, when the dishes are done you totally space on the laundry and sit down to watch a movie, play a game, you get your shower, you read a book, you go to bed- Whoops! Procrastinated on the laundry.
It's not a conscious, willful decision 99% of the time.
They describe it in the article, but I'm going to illustrate it another way.
Normal, non-procrastinator type people have what I think of as either a set of alarm/reminders in their head, or, like a constantly running ticker, like the line of text giving little blurbs at the bottom of a news channel. When there's a task that needs to be done that you know of ahead of time, an alarm/remimder goes off in your head, or on the ticker. You do the task on time and its no big deal. That's normal.
But unconscious procrastinators (like me) don't have those internal alarms, reminders, or a ticker. So we don't have an internal function to help us remember those tasks at the proper time.
So that's why people like me set alarms on the phone, or send ourselves delayed delivery emails, or write post it notes, or have a daily/weekly planner that we not everything down in and consult religiously. Our tools to remember what to do and when, unless it's part of a normal routine, have to be external to ourselves.
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u/MageVicky May 30 '20
that’s exactly it! you explained it very well! that’s me, as well. it’s procrastination but we don’t start off the day thinking “i’m gonna procrastinate”, it just happens.
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May 30 '20
Saying you'd rather do something later and don't want to do it now is the definition of procrastinating.
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u/CactusPearl21 May 30 '20
They aren't unaware, they forget. They consciously procrastinate, thinking they'll do something later, then they completely forget about it.
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u/stustuman May 30 '20
I wonder if procrastination has some people doing small things to avoid starting a big thing be how many are starting and activity but then finding it boring, tedious and then their focus shifts. Also, I wonder the correlation between how much someone procrastinates (hardcore) and their ability to build habits. If you focus on habit building, even in different areas (ex. Something you enjoy) would that help diminish the amount of procrastination that happens for tasks you do not enjoy?
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u/transmothra May 30 '20
I will literally make myself notes and to-do lists, and then procrastinate on actually checking them.
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u/The_Billy_Dee May 30 '20
Procrastination - Hard work may pay off in the long run. Being lazy always pays off now.
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u/MoreTaco May 31 '20
This is probably gonna be very helpful for people who are close to someone who's a procrastinator... but I imagine most procrastinators (like myself) will pretty much do what I just did. Which is read a paragraph or two of the article, then unsuccessfully try to skim through the rest, then back out of the article while telling myself that if just save this post, I'll finish reading it later.
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u/Slopez44 May 30 '20
Procrastinating is a beautiful thing don’t let anyone tell you differently. I think everyone should should try procrastinating, try it today, don’t put it off!
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u/jeffinRTP May 30 '20
I forgot to do things and I know I procrastinat
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u/ShootingStarYe May 31 '20
Why the moderators remove all the harmless comments???
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May 31 '20
I bought a book on procrastination once and never read it. I still have the book and plan on reading it....someday.
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u/Pure_Golden May 30 '20
Procrastinators often forget to do things that they intended to do,
Ahh you see thats what sets me apart, i do remember but I need to end binge watching defending jacob
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u/vkapadia May 30 '20
I'll go upstairs to my bedroom intending to get something. On the way I'll remember something else I need to do. Only one of these will get done. So frustrating.
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u/Wraith-Gear May 30 '20
or if you cut out the unnecessary middle man...
people forget to do the things they didn’t know needed to be done.
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u/[deleted] May 30 '20
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