Abstract
The present study focuses on the integrated effect of self-doubt, rational and irrational beliefs, and fear of failure on procrastination in a sample of Turkish undergraduate students (N = 293). The results confirm prior evidence indicating that self-doubt, fear of failure, and rational/irrational beliefs were important predictors of procrastination. The results show that (a) both self-doubt and irrational beliefs have direct and interactive effects on fear of failure, (b) fear of failure mediates the relationship between self-doubt and procrastination, (c) rational beliefs moderated the predictive effect of fear of failure on procrastination, and (d) the indirect effect of self-doubt on procrastination via fear of failure may vary depending on the level of rational and irrational beliefs. These findings suggest that future intervention attempts should focus on modifying irrational beliefs and enhancing rational beliefs to cope with procrastination.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aftab, S., Klibert, J., Holtzman, N., Qadeer, K., & Aftab, S. (2017). Schemas mediate the link between procrastination and depression: Results from the United States and Pakistan. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-017-0263-5.
Balkis, M. (2013). Academic procrastination, academic life satisfaction and academic achievement: The mediation role of rational beliefs about studying. Journal of Cognitive and Behavioral Psychotherapies, 13(1), 57–74.
Balkis, M. (2015). The moderator role of rational beliefs in relation to procrastination, academic achievement and academic satisfaction. Eğitim Bilimleri Fakültesi Dergisi, 48(1), 87–107.
Balkis, M., & Duru, E. (2012). The direct and indirect role of self-esteem and procrastination in the relation to fear of failure and self-worth. International Journal of Human Sciences, 9(2), 1075–1093.
Balkis, M., & Duru, E. (2018a). The protective role of rational beliefs on the relationship between irrational beliefs, emotional states of stress, depression and anxiety. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-018-0305-7.
Balkis, M., & Duru, E. (2018b). Procrastination, self-downing, self-doubt, and rational beliefs: A moderated mediation model. Journal of Counseling & Development, 96(2), 187–196.
Baumeister, R. F., Schmeichel, B. J., & Vohs, K. D. (2007). Self-regulation and the executive function: The self as controlling agent. Social Psychology: Handbook of Basic Principles, 2, 516–539.
Bernard, M. E. (1990). Validation of General Attitude and Belief Scale. Presented at the World Congress of Mental Health Counselling, Keystone, Colorado.
Bernard, M. E. (1995). A rational-emotive mental training program for professional athletes. In A. Ellis & M. E. Berbard (Eds.), Clinical application of rational-emotive therapy (pp. 277–309). Boston: Springer.
Bernard, M. E. (1998). Validation of the general attitude and belief scale. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 16, 183–196. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024911014579.
Bernard, M. E. (2011). Rationality and the pursuit of happiness. The legacy of Albert Ellis. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
Beswick, G., Rothblum, E. D., & Mann, L. (1988). Psychological antecedents of student procrastination. Australian Psychologist, 23, 207–217. https://doi.org/10.1080/00050068808255605.
Bridges, K. R., & Roig, M. (1997). Academic procrastination and irrational thinking: A reexamination with context controlled. Personality and Individual Differences, 22(6), 941–944. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(96)00273-5.
Burka, J. B., & Yuen, L. M. (1983). Procrastination: Why you do it, what to do about it. Cambridge: Da Capo Press.
Burka, J. B., & Yuen, L. M. (2008). Procrastination: Why you do it, what to do about it. Cambridge: Da Capo Press.
Caserta, D. A., Dowd, E. T., David, D., & Ellis, A. (2010). Rational and irrational beliefs in primary prevention and mental health. In D. David, S. J. Lynn, & A. Ellis (Eds.), Rational and Irrational beliefs: Research, theory and clinical practice (pp. 173–194). New York: Oxford University Press.
Champoux, J. E., & Peters, W. S. (1987). Form, effect size, and power in moderated regression analysis. Journal of Occupational Psychology, 60(3), 243–255. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8325.1987.tb00257.x.
Child, D. (1990). The essentials of factor analysis (2nd ed.). London: Cassel Educational Limited.
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Conroy, D. E., Willow, J. P., & Metzler, J. N. (2002). Multidimensional fear of failure measurement: The performance failure appraisal inventory. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 14(2), 76–90. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200252907752.
David, D., Lynn, S. J., & Ellis, A. (2010). The role of rational and irrational beliefs in human functioning and disturbances: Implications for research, theory, and clinical practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Dinnel, D. L., Thompson, T., & Hopkins, J. (2002). Family Environment Variables Related to the Development of Failure-Avoidant Patterns. A poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society, New Orleans, LA.
Dryden, W., & Neenan, M. (2004). Rational emotive behavioral counselling in action. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Duru, E., & Balkis, M. (2014). The roles of academic procrastination tendency on the relationships among self-doubt, self-esteem, and academic achievement. Education and Sciences, 39(173), 274–287.
Ellis, A. (2003). Discomfort anxiety: A new cognitive-behavioral construct (Part I). Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 21(3–4), 183–191.
Ellis, A., & Dryden, W. (1997). The practice of rational emotive behavior therapy (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Springer.
Ellis, A., & Knaus, W. (1977). Overcoming procrastination. New York: Institute for Rational Living.
Evans, M. G. (1985). A Monte Carlo study of the effects of correlated method variance in moderated multiple regression analysis. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 36, 305–323. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(85)90002-0.
Feick, D. L., & Rhodewalt, F. (1997). The double-edged sword of self-handicapping: Discounting, augmentation, and the protection and enhancement of self-esteem. Motivation and Emotion, 21(2), 147–163. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024434600296.
Ferrari, J. R. (1994). Dysfunctional procrastination and its relationship with self-esteem, interpersonal dependency, and self-defeating behaviors. Personality and Individual Differences, 17(5), 673–679. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-8869(94)90140-6.
Ferrari, J. R. (2000). Procrastination and attention: Factor analysis of attention deficit, boredomness, intelligence, self-esteem, and task delay frequencies. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 15(5), 185–196.
Ferrari, J. R., & Díaz-Morales, J. F. (2007). Perceptions of self-concept and self-presentation by procrastinators: Further evidence. Spanish Journal of Psychology, 10(1), 91–96.
Ferrari, J. R., & Emmons, R. A. (1994). Procrastination as revenge: do people report using delays as a strategy for vengeance? Personality and Individual Differences, 17(4), 539–544. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-8869(94)90090-6.
Ferrari, J. R., Johnson, J. L., & McCown, W. G. (Eds.). (1995). Procrastination and task avoidance: Theory, research, and treatment. New York: Plenum Press.
Flett, G. L., Blankstein, K. R., & Martin, T. R. (1995). Procrastination, negative self-judgments, and stress in depression and anxiety: A review and preliminary model. In J. R. Ferrari, J. L. Johnson, & W. G. McCown (Eds.), Procrastination and task avoidance: Theory, research, and treatment (pp. 137–167). NY: Plenum.
Flett, G. L., Stainton, M., Hewitt, P. L., Sherry, S. B., & Lay, C. (2012). Procrastination automatic thoughts as a personality construct: An analysis of the procrastinatory cognitions inventory. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 30(4), 223–236. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-012-0150-z.
Froggatt, W. (2005). A Brief Introduction to Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (3rd Ed.) New Zealand, Stortford Lodge: Hastings. Retrieved March 16, 2015 from http://www.rational.org.nz/prof-docs/Intro-REBT.pdf.
Haghbin, M., McCaffrey, A., & Pychyl, T. A. (2012). The complexity of the relation between fear of failure and procrastination. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 30(4), 249–263. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-012-0153-9.
Harrington, N. (2005). It’s too difficult! Frustration intolerance beliefs and procrastination. Personality and Individual Differences, 39(5), 873–883. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2004.12.018.
Harriott, J., & Ferrari, J. R. (1996). Prevalence of procrastination among samples of adults. Psychological Reports, 78(2), 611–616. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1996.78.2.611.
Harriott, J. S., Ferrari, J. R., & Dovidio, J. F. (1996). Distractibility, daydreaming, and self-critical cognitions as determinants of indecision. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 11(2), 337–344.
Hayes, A. F. (2009). Beyond Baron and Kenny: Statistical mediation analysis in the new millennium. Communication Monographs, 76(4), 408–420. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637750903310360.
Hayes, A. F. (2013). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. New York, NY: Guilford.
Hyland, P., Shevlin, M., Adamson, G., & Boduszek, D. (2014). The organization of irrational beliefs in posttraumatic stress symptomology: Testing the predictions of REBT theory using structural equation modelling. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 70(1), 48–59. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22009.
Johnson, J. L., & Bloom, A. M. (1995). An analysis of the contribution of the five factors of personality to variance in academic procrastination. Personality and Individual Differences, 18, 127–133. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-8869(94)00109-6.
Kline, T. J. (2005). Psychological testing: A practical approach to design and evaluation. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Knaus, W. J. (2006). Frustration tolerance training for children. In A. Ellis & M. E. Bernard (Eds.), Rational emotive behavior approaches to childhood disorders (pp. 133–155). New York: Springer.
Lee, E. (2005). The relationship of motivation and flow experience to academic procrastination in university students. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 166(1), 5–15. https://doi.org/10.3200/GNTP.166.1.5-15.
McCown, B., Blake, I. K., & Keiser, R. (2012). Content analyses of the beliefs of academic procrastinators. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 30(4), 213–222. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-012-0148-6.
Oleson, K. C., Poehlmann, K. M., Yost, J. H., Lynch, M. E., & Arkin, R. M. (2000). Subjective overachievement: Individual differences in self-doubt and concern with performance. Journal of Personality, 68, 491–524. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6494.00104.
Özer, B. U., Demir, A., & Ferrari, J. (2009). Exploring academic procrastination among Turkish students: Possible gender differences in prevalence and reasons. The Journal of Social Psychology, 149(2), 241–257. https://doi.org/10.3200/SOCP.149.2.241-257.
Powers, T. A., Koestner, R., & Zuroff, D. C. (2007). Self–criticism, goal motivation, and goal progress. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 26(7), 826–840. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2009.03.012.
Preacher, K. J., & Kelley, K. (2011). Effect size measures for mediation models: Quantitative strategies for communicating indirect effects. Psychological Methods, 16(2), 93–115. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022658.
Pychyl, T. A., Coplan, R. J., & Reid, P. A. (2002). Parenting and procrastination: Gender differences in the relations between procrastination, parenting style and self-worth in early adolescence. Personality and Individual Differences, 33, 271–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(01)00151-9.
Rorer, L. G. (1983). “Deep” RET: A reformulation of some psychodynamic explanations of procrastination. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 7(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01173419.
Senecal, C., Koestner, R., & Vallerand, R. J. (1995). Self-regulation and academic procrastination. The Journal of Social Psychology, 135(5), 607–619.
Sirois, F. M. (2015). Is procrastination a vulnerability factor for hypertension and cardiovascular disease? Testing an extension of the procrastination–health model. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 38(3), 578–589. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-015-9629-2.
Solomon, L., & Rothblum, E. (1984). Academic procrastination: Frequency and cognitive-behavioral correlates. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 31, 503–509. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.31.4.503.
Steel, P. (2007). The nature of procrastination: A meta-analytic and theoretical review of quintessential self-regulatory failure. Psychological Bulletin, 133, 65–94. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.133.1.65.
Steel, P. (2010). Arousal, avoidant and decisional procrastinators: Do they exist? Personality and Individual Differences, 48, 926–934. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.02.025.
Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (2006). Using multivariate statistics. Boston, MA: Pearson Education.
Acknowledgements
This study supported by Pamukkale University Scientific Research Programs (BAP).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Ethical Approval
All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
Informed Consent
Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Balkis, M., Duru, E. Procrastination and Rational/Irrational Beliefs: A Moderated Mediation Model. J Rat-Emo Cognitive-Behav Ther 37, 299–315 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-019-00314-6
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-019-00314-6