Academic procrastination : psychological impact and predictor aspects under the self-determination theory

Background: Academic procrastination is a dynamic phenomenon involving personal, behavioral and environmental aspects and is characterized by delaying the beginning or the ending of an academic task, in a purposeful and frequent way. As such, it generates a subjective discomfort associated with negative psychological consequences in students. Very few studies have investigated procrastination within the frame of the self determination theory, and specifically in the context of basic psychological needs satisfaction. This study aims to explore the relation among academic procrastination, basic psychological needs satisfaction, coping strategies (with a focus on proactive coping), and depression, anxiety and stress. Methods: 211 university students with ages between 18 and 44 years (M = 24.23; DP = 5.72), most of them being females (56.4%), have participated in this transversal study, and fulfilled the Questionnaire of Procrastination in Study, the Basic Psychologic Needs Satisfaction Scale, the Questionnaire of Reactions to Daily Events and the Scale of Anxiety, Depression and Stress-21. Results: The correlation analysis verified that academic procrastination has a negative relation with basic psychological needs satisfaction, and proactive coping, and a positive relation with avoidance coping, and with anxiety, depression and stress. A mediation analysis identified proactive coping as a partial mediator of the relation between basic psychological needs satisfaction and procrastination. Conclusion: The non-satisfaction of the basic psychological needs in students is related to the usage of less adaptative coping strategies, and seems to prevent the use of more effective proactive strategies. On the other hand, those strategies lead to procrastination, which has a negative psychological impact. As such, an intervention based on the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs in the academic context is considered relevant