Academic procrastination, emotional intelligence, academic self-efficacy, and GPA: a comparison between students with and without learning disabilities

Academic procrastination has been seen as an impediment to students' academic success. Research findings suggest that it is related to lower levels of self-regulated learning and academic self-efficacy and associated with higher levels of anxiety, stress, and illness. Emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to assess, regulate, and utilize emotions and has been found to be associated with academic self-efficacy and a variety of better outcomes, including academic performance. Students with learning disabilities (LD) are well acquainted with academic difficulty and maladaptive academic behavior. In comparison to students without LD, they exhibit high levels of learned helplessness, including diminished persistence, lower academic expectations, and negative affect. This study examined the relationships among academic procrastination, EI, and academic performance as mediated by academic self-efficacy in 287 LD and non-LD students. Results indicated that the indirect effect of EI on academic procrastination and GPA was stronger in LD students than in non-LD students. In addition, results indicated that LD students scored lower than non-LD students on both EI and academic self-efficacy and higher on academic procrastination. No difference was found in GPA.

Evaluating the drivers of and obstacles to the willingness to use cognitive enhancement drugs: the influence of drug characteristics, social environment, and personal characteristics

BACKGROUND

The use of cognitive enhancement (CE) by means of pharmaceutical agents has been the subject of intense debate both among scientists and in the media. This study investigates several drivers of and obstacles to the willingness to use prescription drugs non-medically for augmenting brain capacity.

METHODS

We conducted a web-based study among 2,877 students from randomly selected disciplines at German universities. Using a factorial survey, respondents expressed their willingness to take various hypothetical CE-drugs; the drugs were described by five experimentally varied characteristics and the social environment by three varied characteristics. Personal characteristics and demographic controls were also measured.

RESULTS

We found that 65.3% of the respondents staunchly refused to use CE-drugs. The results of a multivariate negative binomial regression indicated that respondents' willingness to use CE-drugs increased if the potential drugs promised a significant augmentation of mental capacity and a high probability of achieving this augmentation. Willingness decreased when there was a high probability of side effects and a high price. Prevalent CE-drug use among peers increased willingness, whereas a social environment that strongly disapproved of these drugs decreased it. Regarding the respondents' characteristics, pronounced academic procrastination, high cognitive test anxiety, low intrinsic motivation, low internalization of social norms against CE-drug use, and past experiences with CE-drugs increased willingness. The potential severity of side effects, social recommendations about using CE-drugs, risk preferences, and competencies had no measured effects upon willingness.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings contribute to understanding factors that influence the willingness to use CE-drugs. They support the assumption of instrumental drug use and may contribute to the development of prevention, policy, and educational strategies.

The relationship between procrastination, perceived stress, saliva alpha-amylase level and parenting styles in Chinese first year medical students

Background

Procrastination is prevalent among students today, and this negatively impacts upon their academic achievement. The current study aimed to explore the relationship between procrastination, perceived stress, saliva alpha-amylase (sAA) levels, and the parenting styles of Chinese first year medical students (MBBS).

Methods

We recruited 140 MBBS students aged 18–22 years. Assessments included the Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (PASS), the Chinese version of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), saliva alpha-amylase level (sAA), and the Chinese version of the Egna Minnen av Barndoms Uppfostran (EMBU) which assesses parenting style. PSS and sAA levels were assessed at week 1 (baseline), then again at week 2 and week 4.

Results

Male students reported higher levels of procrastination and perceived stress reactions than their female counterparts. Male students reported experiencing higher punishing/severe and rejecting (ie negative) parenting styles, while female students reported experiencing higher warm and affectionate (ie positive) parenting styles. Positive parenting styles were negatively associated with to procrastination and stress reactions, while negative parenting styles were positively associated with procrastination and delayed stress reactions among MBBS students.

Conclusion

Procrastination induced stress in MBBS students, providing further evidence that procrastination enhances stress in young adulthood. Negative parenting styles, such as being punishing and rejecting, had a positive correlation with procrastination.

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Peer Attachment and Academic Procrastination in Chinese College Students: A Moderated Mediation Model of Future Time Perspective and Grit

Although prior research has considerably documented the prevalence and correlates of academic procrastination in college students, relatively little is known about the role of longer volitional processes of goal striving, such as grit, on academic procrastination; moreover, the knowledge about direct and interactive effects of social context and personal characteristic on facilitating grit, which in turn mitigate academic procrastination, are still underexplored. Given these gaps in the existing literature, the current study, more exploratory in nature, investigates a moderated mediation model of future time perspective and grit in the association between peer attachment and academic procrastination in Chinese college students. A total of 1,098 undergraduate students (43.2% girls) aged from 18 to 25 were involved in the current study, and participants were asked to fill in a battery of self-report questionnaires. Results indicated that (a) peer attachment was negatively and significantly associated with academic procrastination; (b) grit partially mediated the association between peer attachment and academic procrastination; more precisely, peer attachment was positively associated with grit, which in turn was negatively linked to academic procrastination; and (c) future time perspective moderated the association between peer attachment and grit; more specifically, for students with low levels of future time perspective, the association between peer attachment and grit turned out to be significantly negative. These findings suggest that interventions targeting the enhancement of peer attachment and grit may prevent or reduce academic procrastination, and college students who regard future orientation as pessimistic should be paid specific attention by university-based counseling services.

Academic Procrastination and Goal Accomplishment: A Combined Experimental and Individual Differences Investigation

This study examined the relationship between academic procrastination and goal accomplishment in two novel ways. First, we experimentally tested whether undergraduate students (N = 177) could reduce their academic procrastination over a course of three weeks after performing goal-related exercises to set so-called SMART goals and/or to prepare those students with specific strategies to resist their temptations (forming implementation intentions). Second, we conducted systematic regression analyses to examine whether academic procrastination at baseline uniquely predicts later goal-related outcomes, controlling for various correlated variables, including personality traits (e.g., impulsivity), motivational factors (e.g., motivation for the generated goals), and situational factors (e.g., memory for the goals). Results indicated that neither the SMART-goal nor implementation-intention intervention significantly reduced academic procrastination in the three-week interval, even when relevant moderating variables were examined. Initial levels of academic procrastination, however, were predictive of the success of accomplishing the goals generated during the initial exercises, above and beyond a wide range of other candidate correlates. These results provided new correlational evidence for the association between academic procrastination and goal accomplishment, but suggest a need for further research to understand what interventions are effective at reducing academic procrastination.

How to Reduce Test Anxiety and Academic Procrastination Through Inquiry of Cognitive Appraisals: A Pilot Study Investigating the Role of Academic Self-Efficacy

Background and Objectives

Test anxiety can impair learning motivation and lead to procrastination. Control-value theory of achievement emotions (Pekrun, 2006) assumes test anxiety to be a result of students' appraisals of the testing situation and its outcomes. Modification of cognitive appraisals such as low self-efficacy beliefs is thus assumed to reduce test anxiety and subsequent procrastination. In the present study, we tested the effects of an inquiry-based stress reduction (IBSR) intervention on students' academic self-efficacy, their test anxiety, and subsequent procrastination in the final stages of an academic term.

Design

Longitudinal quasi-randomized intervention control trial.

Methods

University students identified worry thoughts regarding a specific and frightening testing situation. Intervention participants (n = 40) explored their worry thoughts with the IBSR method. Participants of an active waitlist control group (n = 31) received the intervention after the study was completed. Dependent variables were assessed before and after the intervention as well as at the end of the term.

Results

Data-analyses revealed that the IBSR intervention reduced test anxiety as well as subsequent academic procrastination in comparison to the control group. The effect on test anxiety was partly due to an enhancement of self-efficacy.

Conclusion

Our findings provide preliminary evidence that IBSR might help individuals to cope with their test anxiety and procrastination.

Emotion Regulation Difficulties and Academic Procrastination

Objective and Background

Academic procrastination as deliberate postponement of academic tasks, despite being aware of its consequences, is a common phenomenon among students. Current conceptualizations of procrastination support the rule of emotion regulation difficulties in the psychopathology of this phenomenon. In this regard, the current study is aimed to investigate the role of difficulty in emotion regulation in academic procrastination.

Method

The present study is a cross-sectional study. Participants were 250 students who completed Tuckman Procrastination Scale (TPS), and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS).

Result

Correlation analyses showed that the TPS has a significant positive association on overall DERS and all but one of the six dimensions (DERS-Awareness) of emotion regulation difficulties (p < 0.01). This association remained significant after controlling for anxiety and depression. Further, the multivariate regression showed that the only DERS dimension that could predict TPS was DERS-Strategies. Finally, individuals with a high level of procrastination reported greater DERS scores than those with a lower level.

Discussion

Results indicate that difficulty in emotion regulation, especially the ones’ believe about his/her ability in regulating unpleasant emotions effectively, is important in procrastination. However, despite the limited association between DERS and TPS, the findings raise some potentially useful implications for procrastination studies and interventions.

Mobile Phone Addiction and Academic Procrastination Negatively Impact Academic Achievement Among Chinese Medical Students

The problem of mobile phone addiction and academic procrastination among medical students has been widely acknowledged. This study aimed to explore the influence of demographic factors on mobile phone addiction, academic procrastination, and academic achievement among medical students. Further, it investigated the association between mobile phone addiction, academic procrastination, and academic achievement. This cross-sectional study was conducted between May and June 2019. A total of 3 511 medical students participated in an online questionnaire survey (effective response rate = 81.7%). Demographic factors, the Scale of Academic Achievement, the short scale of the Mobile Phone Problem Use (MPPUS-10), and the Academic Procrastination Scale–Short (APS-S) were used. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that the average scores for academic procrastination, mobile phone addiction, and academic achievement were 2.66 ± 0.91, 5.13 ± 1.53, and 4.51 ± 0.71, respectively. Moreover, there were significant differences in gender, grade, leadership experience, and family monthly income across mobile phone addiction, academic procrastination, and academic achievement. Mobile phone addiction was negatively associated with learning dedication, learning performance, and relationship facilitation. Academic procrastination was negatively associated with learning dedication, learning performance, relationship facilitation, and objective achievement. Mobile phone addiction and academic procrastination was revealed as prevalent among Chinese medical students, and negatively influences their academic achievement. It is critical to establish a more efficient learning environment for Chinese medical students to minimize the negative impact of mobile phone addiction and academic procrastination.

Academic procrastination and academic performance: An initial basis for intervention

Academic procrastination is a prevalent phenomenon with a range of negative outcomes. Many studies focused on causes and correlates of academic procrastination; however, the study of interventions for academic procrastination is scarce. The present study is an initial effort to study the relationship between academic procrastination, online course participation, and achievement, as a basis for developing an intervention for academic procrastination. Findings indicated that studying procrastination was negatively associated with final exam grade as well as with the three online course participation measures. Final exam grade was positively associated with two of the online course participation measures, and they positively correlated with each other. In addition, results indicated that studying procrastination, in combination with online course participation measures, explained about 50% of variance in final exam's grade. Frequency of activities in course Web site had the strongest positive effect on final exam's grade. These findings strengthen the notion that studying procrastination is an impediment to students' academic performance and outcomes and clarifies the need to develop and study academic interventions for academic procrastination as a means to decrease its prevalence in academic settings.

Differences in Learning Characteristics Between Students With High, Average, and Low Levels of Academic Procrastination: Students' Views on Factors Influencing Their Learning

Within the field of procrastination, much research has been conducted on factors that have an influence on academic procrastination. Less is known about how such factors may differ for various students. In addition, not much is known about differences in the process of how factors influence students’ learning and what creates differences in procrastination behavior between students with different levels of academic procrastination. In this study learning characteristics and the self-regulation behavior of three groups of students with different levels of academic procrastination were compared. The rationale behind this was that certain learning characteristics and self-regulation behaviors may play out differently in students with different levels of academic procrastination. Participants were first-year students (N = 22) with different levels of academic procrastination enrolled in an elementary teacher education program. The selection of the participants into three groups of students (low procrastination, n = 8; average procrastination, n = 8; high procrastination, n = 6) was based on their scores on a questionnaire measuring the students’ levels of academic procrastination. From semi-structured interviews, six themes emerged that describe how students in the three groups deal with factors that influence the students’ learning: degree program choice, getting started with study activities, engagement in study activities, ways of reacting to failure, view of oneself, and study results. This study shows the importance of looking at differences in how students deal with certain factors possibly negatively influencing their learning. Within the group of students with average and high levels of academic procrastination, factors influencing their learning are regularly present. These factors lead to procrastination behavior among students with high levels of academic procrastination, but this seems not the case among students with an average level of academic procrastination.

Academic interventions for academic procrastination: A review of the literature

Procrastination is a widespread phenomenon in academic settings. It has been studied from many different theoretical angles, and a variety of causes and consequences have been suggested. Recent studies support the notion that academic procrastination can be seen from a situational perspective and as a failure in learning self-regulation. It suggests that interventions should address situational as well as deficits in self-regulation to help students overcome their procrastinating tendencies. The present review examined the recent literature on causes and consequences of academic procrastination and the limited number of studies of academic interventions for academic procrastination. Findings of this review strengthen the need to further study the topic of academic interventions for academic procrastination and to develop effective interventions. At the end of this review, several suggestions for the development of academic interventions are outlined.

How Study Environments Foster Academic Procrastination: Overview and Recommendations

Procrastination is common among students, with prevalence estimates double or even triple those of the working population. This inflated prevalence indicates that the academic environment may appear as "procrastination friendly" to students. In the present paper, we identify social, cultural, organizational, and contextual factors that may foster or facilitate procrastination (such as large degree of freedom in the study situation, long deadlines, and temptations and distractions), document their research basis, and provide recommendations for changes in these factors to reduce and prevent procrastination. We argue that increased attention to such procrastination-friendly factors in academic environments is important and that relatively minor measures to reduce their detrimental effects may have substantial benefits for students, institutions, and society.

The Relationship between Physical Activity and Academic Procrastination in Chinese College Students: The Mediating Role of Self-Efficacy

Background: Academic procrastination (AP) has been a common problematic behavior in college students. While physical activity (PA) has been reported to increase self-efficacy and reduce AP, less is known about the potential relationships among them. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the mediating effect of self-efficacy on the relationship between PA and AP. Methods: 687 Chinese college students (51% males, 49% females) aged 17–23 years (M = 19.59, SD = 0.89) participated in the study. PA, self-efficacy, and AP were assessed using the Physical Activity Rating Scale-3 (PARS-3), the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (PASS), respectively. Pearson correlation analysis, linear regression analysis, and mediation analysis were used to analyze the data. Results: (1) PA has a significant and negative impact on college students’ AP, (2) PA has a significant and positive impact on college students’ self-efficacy; (3) self-efficacy has a significant and negative impact on AP in college students; and (4) self-efficacy significantly mediates the relationship between PA and AP. Conclusions: PA is an effective intervention for directly and indirectly decreasing college students’ AP. Therefore, more intervention efforts should focus on the promotion of PA in higher education to improve students’ self-efficacy and thus, to reduce AP among college students.

Examining Procrastination among University Students through the Lens of the Self-Regulated Learning Model

Generally considered as a prevalent occurrence in academic settings, procrastination was analyzed in association with constructs such as self-efficacy, self-esteem, anxiety, stress, and fear of failure. This study investigated the role played by self-regulated learning strategies in predicting procrastination among university students. To this purpose, the relationships of procrastination with cognitive and metacognitive learning strategies and time management were explored in the entire sample, as well as in male and female groups. Gender differences were taken into account due to the mixed results that emerged in previous studies. This cross-sectional study involved 450 university students (M = 230; F = 220; Mage = 21.08, DS = 3.25) who completed a self-reported questionnaire including a sociodemographic section, the Tuckman Procrastination Scale, the Time Management Scale, and the Metacognitive Self-Regulation and Critical Thinking Scales. Descriptive and inferential analyses were applied to the data. The main findings indicated that temporal and metacognitive components play an important role in students' academic achievement and that, compared to females, males procrastinate more due to poor time management skills and metacognitive strategies. Practical implications were suggested to help students to overcome their dilatory behavior.

Bibliometric Analysis and Visualization of Academic Procrastination

Numerous students suffer from academic procrastination; it is a common problem and phenomenon in academic settings. Many previous researchers have analyzed its relationships with other factors, such as self-regulation and academic success. This paper aims to provide a full outline of academic procrastination and explore the current hot spots and trends. Bibliometrix and VOSviewer were used to conduct quantitative analysis. The data was collected from the Web of Science core collection database, which contains 1,240 articles from the years 1938 to 2021. The analysis shows that the publication of articles on academic procrastination has been rapidly increasing since 1993. In terms of the most influential countries and institutions, the United states took a prominent lead among all countries, and the most productive institutions in this area were the University of Washington and University of California, Los Angeles. By analyzing the authors, we see that most authors like working with a few collaborators, leading to main groups of authors, such as Murat Balkis and June J. Pilcher. The most frequently cited author was Esther D. Rothblum. Based on the co-citation journals network, Personality and Individual Differences was the prolific and influential journal referring to the number of citations and articles it received. The VOSviewer tool identified the hot spots of academic procrastination, which were mainly distributed as follows: (a) procrastination, (b) academic procrastination, (c) self-regulation, (d) academic performance, and (e) motivation. Therefore, this paper is helpful for scholars and practitioners to know the trend of academic procrastination research comprehensively.

Attributions of Responsibility and Blame for Procrastination Behavior

The present study examined the relationship between procrastination, delay, blameworthiness, and moral responsibility. Undergraduate students (N = 240) were provided two scenarios in which the reason for inaction (procrastination, delay), the target (self, other), and the outcome (positive, negative) were manipulated, and students were asked to rate the moral responsibility and blameworthiness of the agent. Results indicated that individuals who procrastinated were seen as more morally responsible and blameworthy than those who experienced delay. More specifically, after a negative outcome, procrastination was associated with more moral responsibility, whereas delay was associated with less moral responsibility. After a positive outcome, individuals perceived procrastination as deserving of less moral responsibility, and delays as associated with more moral responsibility. Finally, a three-way interaction showed that participants rated procrastination that resulted in failure as deserving of responsibility when engaged in by others as opposed to oneself.

A Field Experimental Design of a Strengths-Based Training to Overcome Academic Procrastination: Short- and Long-Term Effect

This study reports on the effect of a newly developed 4-week strengths-based training approach to overcome academic procrastination, given to first-year elementary teacher education students (N = 54). The training was based on a strengths-based approach, in which elements of the cognitive behavioral approach were also used. The purpose of the training was to promote awareness of the personal strengths of students who experience academic procrastination regularly and to teach them how to use their personal strengths in situations in which they usually tend to procrastinate. With a pretest-posttest control group design (two experimental groups: n = 31, control group: n = 23), the effect of the training on academic procrastination was studied after 1, 11, and 24 weeks. Results of a one-way analysis of covariance revealed a significant short-term effect of the training. In the long term (after 11 and 24 weeks), the scores for academic procrastination for the intervention groups remained stable, whereas the scores for academic procrastination for the control group decreased to the same level as those of the intervention groups. The findings of this study suggest that a strengths-based approach can be helpful to students at an early stage of their academic studies to initiate their individual process of dealing with academic procrastination. The findings for the long term show the importance of measuring the outcomes of an intervention not only shortly after the intervention but also in the long term. Further research is needed to find out how the short-term effect can be maintained in the long-term.

The Mediating Role of Perceived Stress and Academic Procrastination between Physical Activity and Depressive Symptoms among Chinese College Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Depressive symptoms, a prevalent mood illness, significantly harm college students' physical and mental health. Individuals have experienced some degree of psychological harm as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Taking this into account, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between physical activity (PA) and depressive symptoms among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the mediating roles of perceived stress and academic procrastination. A total of 586 college students were subjected to the Physical Activity Scale (PARS-3), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), the Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (PASS), and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Findings from this research demonstrated that there was a significant positive correlation between perceived stress, academic procrastination, and depressive symptoms, while PA was significantly negatively correlated with perceived stress, academic procrastination, and depressive symptoms. The results of the chain mediation analysis showed that PA had a significant direct effect on depressive symptoms. Perceived stress, academic procrastination, and perceived stress-academic procrastination had significant mediating and chain mediating effects on the relationship between PA and depressive symptoms. In conclusion, PA among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic affects their depressive symptoms directly and indirectly through the independent mediating effect of perceived stress and academic procrastination, as well as the chain mediating effect of perceived stress and academic procrastination.

The Mediating Roles of Time Management and Learning Strategic Approach in the Relationship Between Smartphone Addiction and Academic Procrastination

Purpose

Smartphone is an indispensable everyday tool for college students, while excessive usage of smartphones may lead to negative outcomes, such as academic procrastination. Previous research has suggested that smartphone addiction is a predisposing factor for procrastination. To further understand the above relationship, structural equation model analysis was used to examine the mediating effects of time management and learning strategic approach in the association with smartphone addiction and academic procrastination.

Materials and Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted in September 2021. A total of 1129 college students aged 18 to 22 participated in the present study was adopted the cluster random sampling method and the following tools were used: the Mobile Phone Addiction Index Scale, Time Management Disposition Scale, Revised Approaches to Studying Inventory, and Aitken Procrastination Scale.

Results

Results indicated that smartphone addiction is positively linked to academic procrastination, while negatively linked to time management and learning strategic approach. Both time management and learning strategic approach were negatively linked to academic procrastination. Additionally, the results showed that time management and learning strategic approach serve sequential mediating roles in the association with smartphone addiction and academic procrastination among Chinese college students after controlling for age and sex (RMSEA = 0.045, SRMR = 0.035, TLI = 0.993, CFI = 0.979).

Conclusion

Time management and learning strategic approach serve sequential mediating roles in the association with smartphone addiction and academic procrastination among Chinese college students. Therefore, intervention management that focusing on improving time management as well as strengthening learning strategic approach may be useful for reducing academic procrastination among college students.

Ecological Assets and Academic Procrastination among Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Commitment to Learning

Academic procrastination is defined as a purposive delay of academic tasks that must be completed. Within the framework of the ecological model of resiliency, this study examined how ecological assets were related to academic procrastination among adolescents. Participants in the study were 577 adolescents (53.5% boys) from Shanghai, China. They completed measures of ecological assets, commitment to learning, and academic procrastination. Structural equation modeling revealed that, as predicted, ecological assets were negatively associated with academic procrastination. In addition, commitment to learning fully mediated the association between ecological assets and academic procrastination. Implications of the present findings are discussed.

Online and Academic Procrastination in Students With Learning Disabilities: The Impact of Academic Stress and Self-Efficacy

The steady growth in the number of college students with learning disabilities (LD) increases the need to investigate their unique characteristics and behaviors in academia. The present study examined the differences in academic and online procrastination, academic stress, and academic self-efficacy between college students with and without LD. In addition, the relationship between these variables was examined. It was assumed that the difficulties experienced by college students with LD would lead them to increased levels of academic stress, and academic and online procrastination. The results showed significant differences in the levels of all variables except online procrastination between students with (n = 77) and without (n = 98) LD. Further analysis indicated that academic stress and academic self-efficacy mediated the link between LD and academic and online procrastination. These findings support the notion that during higher education, students with LD experience more difficulties than students without LD, which at times will lead them to increased levels of procrastination. However, further studies are needed to understand the nature of online procrastination in students with LD in higher education.

Procrastination during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review

Procrastination involves voluntarily or habitually delaying unpleasant tasks for later. It is characterized by short-term benefits and long-term costs. The COVID-19 pandemic set specific circumstances that may have influenced procrastination behavior. This scoping review identified the existing peer-reviewed literature in English or Spanish about procrastination during the COVID-19 pandemic (January 2020 to April 2021) in six electronic databases. To conduct the review, a five-step methodological framework, as well as established PRISMA guidelines, was followed. A total of 101 articles were found. After removing duplicates and reviewing the articles, only 13 were included in the review. Findings indicate that procrastination was studied mostly in academic contexts in various parts of the globe. Procrastination behavior was related to anxiety, distress, time management, self-control, and other variables. There is limited information about interventions to prevent or decrease procrastinating behaviors in the context of confinement or in the living conditions generated by the pandemic. Future research should consider how procrastination evolved during the pandemic using longitudinal methodologies. Individual differences related to procrastination also should be identified, and the evaluation of the efficacy of existing interventions is still needed. This information might help in the creation of appropriate interventions that target detrimental procrastination behaviors.

Development and validation of Temperance Scale in Pakistan

The purpose of the present research was to construct and validate a measure of temperance-one's capability of moderation or voluntary self-restraint. This research comprised two studies. In Study I, an item pool of 83 items was generated, 75 items were finalized by a committee of experts, and then these items were administered on a purposive sample of university students (n = 250). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed a four-factor solution with 24 items and the factors were named as Self-regulation (α = .72), Prudence (α = .71), Humility (α = .79), and Forgiveness (α = .73). Study II of the present research confirmed the factorial structure of the Temperance Scale in an independent sample of university students (n = 268). The Temperance Scale, Academic Procrastination Scale, and Empathy Quotient Short Form were administered to the participants. Confirmatory factor analysis of the Temperance Scale demonstrated a good model fit to the data with the same four factors as established during the EFA. The Temperance Scale was positively correlated with empathy and it had a nonsignificant relationship with academic procrastination. The results support that the newly developed scale has promising validity.

Academic Hardiness as a Moderator between Evaluative Concerns Perfectionism and Academic Procrastination in Students

Academic procrastination is a common phenomenon in students that can have a negative impact on effective learning, academic achievement, self-esteem, and quality of life. This study examined the associations among the two dimensions of perfectionism (personal standards perfectionism and evaluative concerns perfectionism), academic hardiness, and academic procrastination, as well as the moderating role of academic hardiness in the relationship between the two dimensions of perfectionism and academic procrastination. Participants of this study included 410 high school students in grades 9 to 12 from six schools in Tehran, Iran who completed the Almost Perfect Scale-Revised, the Academic Hardiness Scale, and the Procrastination Assessment Scale. The results indicated that personal standards perfectionism and academic hardiness had negative relationships with academic procrastination, whereas evaluative concerns perfectionism had a positive relationship with academic procrastination. Interaction-moderation analysis demonstrated that academic hardiness only played a buffering role in the relationship between evaluative concerns perfectionism and academic procrastination. The results of this study elucidate the experience of academic procrastination in students and highlight the role of academic hardiness and personal standards perfectionism. Implications for educators and psychologists are discussed.

Moderating Role of Peer Pressure and Positive Learning Environment Between Career Calling and Academic Procrastination in Chinese Medical Students During Controlled COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study

Purpose

The COVID-19 pandemic sets specific circumstances that may accelerate academic procrastination behavior of medical students. Career calling is a protective factor that fights against academic procrastination and may further improve medical students' mental health and academic achievement. This study aims to determine the status of Chinese medical students' academic procrastination during controlled COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, the study investigates the relationships and mechanisms among career calling, peer pressure, a positive learning environment, and academic procrastination.

Patients and Methods

Data were collected from several Chinese medical universities through an anonymous cross-sectional survey of 3614 respondents (effective response rate = 60.0%). Using online questionnaires to collect the data and IBM SPSS Statistics 22.0 for statistical analysis.

Results

The average score of academic procrastination of Chinese medical students was 2.62±0.86. This study proved the usage of peer pressure and positive learning environment as moderating roles of relationship between career calling and academic procrastination. Career calling was negatively correlated with academic procrastination (r = -0.232, p < 0.01), while it was positively correlated with peer pressure (r = 0.390, p < 0.01) and a positive learning environment (r = 0.339, p < 0.01). Moreover, academic procrastination was negatively correlated with peer pressure (r = -0.279, p < 0.01) and a positive learning environment (r = -0.242, p < 0.01). Peer pressure was positively correlated with a positive learning environment (r = 0.637, p < 0.01).

Conclusion

The findings emphasize the importance of constructive peer pressure and a positive learning environment that discourages academic procrastination. Educators should highlight medical career calling education by offering related courses to fight against academic procrastination.