Like most adults, college students carry heavy loads -- fromclass and work to extra curricular activities and a social life. Asa result, procrastination seems to become a regular occurrence intheir lives, sometimes creating life-long, damaging habits.
Ninety percent of college students procrastinate, and 25 percentof those students are chronic procrastinators, usually the ones whodrop out of school, according to psychologist William Knaus of theUniversity of New York, Buffalo.
Contrary to belief, the problem isn't laziness, but timemanagement and a lack of focus. When students plan their timepoorly, they often end up with mountain-sized tasks and very littledesire to get them done, experts say.
"When I have extra time to complete projects, that's exactlywhat it is - free time," sophomore Denesa Nicks said. "Only whenit's the last day before turning in a project do I becomeaggressive. Then everything becomes a top priority. It doesn'tmatter that I might have had a month to two months to completeit."
Most students say they start out with good intentions of gettingthe work done, but those intentions quickly turn to excuses whenthey realize they never got around to it, and several reasons maybe to blame.
If students don't make room for relaxation in their schedule,they often end up shortchanging their study time. They're eitheruninterested in the project or overwhelmed by the amount of effortit will take to finish it.
Counselor Justin Anderson of The University of MemphisPsychological Counseling Unit said a lot of the timeprocrastination is due to influences outside of academics.
"They're usually under too much stress, anxiety or depression,"Anderson said.
"Or sometimes their life is just too hectic, and they can't getanything done. It becomes a problem when they let too many thingsstack up."
Most students said they notice when procrastination is beginningto be an issue, especially when their grades are being affected.Still, they continue to put things off, creating a pattern thatcould possibly hurt their health.
"Procrastination can effect anxiety levels," Anderson said. "Ifanxiety levels go up, immune systems can go down."
In turn, students can become more susceptible to colds, the fluand insomnia.
Junior Niketa Reed said although she was once guilty of stallingand waiting to the last minute to do her work, she has learned todo better.
"Start getting more organized and forcing yourself to stay onschedule," Reed said. "Do your homework, set a time to study andset a time to write your paper throughout the week instead ofsaying, 'OK, I'll do it tomorrow.'"
For help overcoming procrastination, students should recognizenegative behavior, which could be anything from indecisiveness anddifficulty concentrating to perfectionism. They should know theirstrengths and weaknesses and discipline themselves to use timewisely and set goals, the psychologists said.
For additional help, visit the Psychology Counseling Unit in thepsychology department.
