Procrastination Formula Found! Ã: Utility = E x V/ÃD

[|Zach|]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releas...-wst010907.php

Research into procrastination shows surprising findings

A University of Calgary professor in the Haskayne School of Business has recently published his magnum opus on the subject of procrastination – and it's only taken him 10 years.

Joking aside, Dr. Piers Steel is probably the world's foremost expert on the subject of putting off until tomorrow what should be done today. His comprehensive analysis of procrastination research, published in the recent edition of the American Psychological Association's Psychological Bulletin, presents some surprising conclusions on the subject, such as:

*

Most people's New Year's resolutions are doomed to failure

* Most self-help books have it completely wrong when they say perfectionism is at the root of procrastination, and

* Procrastination can be explained by a single mathematical equation

"Essentially, procrastinators have less confidence in themselves, less expectancy that they can actually complete a task," Steel says. "Perfectionism is not the culprit. In fact, perfectionists actually procrastinate less, but they worry about it more."

Other predictors of procrastination include: task aversiveness, impulsiveness, distractibility, and how much a person is motivated to achieve. Not all delays can be considered procrastination; the key is that a person must believe it would be better to start working on given tasks immediately, but still not start.

It's estimated that about 15-20 per cent of the general population are procrastinators. And the costs of procrastinating can add up well beyond poor work performance, especially for those who delay filing their taxes or planning their retirement.

Steel says motivational failures such as difficulty in sticking to diets and exercise regimes – frequently the focus of New Year's resolutions – are related to procrastination because impulsiveness is often at the root of the failure. "Temptations that are close at hand are difficult to resist. Addicts often relapse after returning from treatment facilities because drugs and alcohol become easily available and daily habits reassert themselves. Or we load up on bread in the restaurant before the meal is served. Or we check our email 10 times an hour instead of completing a project."

The good news is that willpower has an unusual capacity. "The old saying is true: 'Whether you believe you can or believe you can't, you're probably right'," Steel says. "And as you get better at self control, your expectancy about whether you can resist goes up and thus improves your ability to resist."

Steel has also come up with the E=MC2 of procrastination, a formula he's dubbed Temporal Motivational Theory, which takes into account factors such as the expectancy a person has of succeeding with a given task (E), the value of completing the task (V), the desirability of the task (Utility), its immediacy or availability (Ã) and the person's sensitivity to delay (D).

It looks like this and uses the Greek letter Ã: Utility = E x V/ÃD

It's still unclear why some people may be more prone to developing procrastination behaviour, but some evidence suggests it may be genetic. Steel concludes: "Continued research into procrastination should not be delayed, especially because its prevalence seems to be growing."

###

The title of the paper is "The Nature of Procrastination: A Meta-Analytic and Theoretical Review of Quintessential Self-Regulatory Failure." The American Psychological Association's Psychological Bulletin is arguably the top academic journal for the social sciences. Steel's research on the subject is referred to as a meta-analysis, in which he distills and synthesizes the evidence on procrastination from 691 other research sources.

To arrange an interview with Dr. Piers Steel, contact his office at (403) 220-8428 or email piers.steel@haskayne.ucalgary.ca. For more information, or a copy of the paper, contact Greg Harris, U of C Media Relations, at (403) 220-3506, cell 540-7306 or email gharris@ucalgary.ca

[Nzoner]

I think I'll read this later

[Stinger]

Originally Posted by Nzoner

I think I'll read this later

Darn beaten to the punchline.

Oh Well...

[Reaper16]

Originally Posted by Nzoner

I think I'll read this later

Oh, c'mon. It's not that long, and its pretty interes.... OH I SEE WAT U DID THER!

[Hammock Parties]

One of the greatest moments of my life was in 6th grade near the conclusion of a match in my junior high school chess club. As the bell rung, signaling the end of our meeting, I won my game on points. It was at this moment that Stephen Erickson picked up the chess board, whacked me over the head with it and yelled "PROCRASTINATOR!!!!"

[|Zach|]

Originally Posted by GoChiefs

One of the greatest moments of my life was in 6th grade near the conclusion of a match in my junior high school chess club. As the bell rung, signaling the end of our meeting, I won my game on points. It was at this moment that Stephen Erickson picked up the chess board, whacked me over the head with it and yelled "PROCRASTINATOR!!!!"

Really?

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by (Zach)

Really?

Well...one of the moments I'll never forget.

[|Zach|]

Originally Posted by GoChiefs

Well...one of the moments I'll never forget.

[Simplex3]

Originally Posted by GoChiefs

Well...one of the moments I'll never forget.

Find me that pic of Slayer's face on the Pope. Then you'll have another great moment in your life.

Please.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Simplex3

Find me that pic of Slayer's face on the Pope. Then you'll have another great moment in your life.

Please.

I save all this shit.

[BWillie]

.999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999 =1

[boogblaster]

Could you post this at a later time. Im taking a nap ..