Procrastination is the intentional postponement or delay of a planned action, even if one assumes that this delay will lead to negative results or make things worse in the future (Steel, 2007). Recently, the prevalence of academic procrastination has increased in the student population. For example, the current rate for the year 2022 is reported to be 74% (Zhang et al., 2022), whereas this rate for the university student population was 46 in 1984 (Solomon & Rothblum, 1984) and 52% in 2009 (Özer et al., 2009). Existing data suggest that procrastination affects academic performance (Kim & Seo, 2015), academic (Balkis, 2013; Balkis & Duru, 2016), and overall life satisfaction (Balkis & Duru, 2021; Beutel et al., 2016).

The cost and high prevalence of academic procrastination have raised the question of why students engage in such harmful behavior. In the existing literature, fear of failure has long been recognized as a primary reason for procrastination (Berry, 1975; Burka & Yuen, 2008; Covington, 1993; Ellis & Knaus, 1977; Ferrari et al., 1995; Haghbin et al., 2012). Fear of failure is a concept related to students’ academic performance and success. This concept encompasses avoidance behaviors in the area of achievement. Specifically, fear of failure can be seen as a tendency to avoid failure in situations where the probability of success is low and the probability of being hurt by failure is high (Elliot & Thrash, 2004). From a different scientific perspective, Martin and Marsh (2003) emphasize the fact that fear of failure and the avoidance of failure are closely linked, but are based on different behavioral constructs. According to them, fear of failure is a cognitive construct and avoidance of failure is a behavioral construct. On the other hand, these two conceptual structures can also be seen as complementary processes. Fear of failure as a cognitive construct can facilitate subsequent avoidance behavior to protect the self from being hurt. Therefore, it can be assumed that students with a high fear of failure are more likely to postpone their academic duties and responsibilities. To illustrate, procrastination behavior can serve a defense function against the fear of failure, as emphasized by Berry (1975). Similarly, Covington (1993) states that students use many defense mechanisms to avoid the fear of failure, and procrastination is indeed one of them. Failure-avoidant students are driven by fear of failure and self-doubt. They are anxious and uncertain about their ability to avoid failure or to achieve success. Although these students work hard, they are negatively affected when they encounter setbacks and their resilience is low. Because of their fear of failure, they sometimes deliberately sabotage their chances of success, thus creating an excuse for their poor performance (Martin & Marsh, 2003). These students may actively sabotage their chances of success by procrastinating by leaving tasks to the last minute, or by putting in little effort (Elliot & Church, 2003). Thus, they find excuses for their failures. This excuse serves to protect their 'self' from being hurt since they can attribute their poor performance to their procrastination rather than a possible indication for their lack of talent (Covington, 1992; Covington & Omelich, 1991; Martin & Marsh, 2003). Based on their clinical observations, Burka and Yuen (2008) also suggest that people who put off their work and wait until the last minute are afraid of being judged by others. These people fear that their work will be perceived as inadequate by others and that even their best efforts will not be enough (Burka & Yuen, 2008). In parallel, earlier evidence suggests that students cite fear of failure as the main reason for procrastination (Özer et al., 2009; Solomon & Rothblum, 1984). Several studies attempt to test this assumption to determine whether fear of failure is one of the main causes of procrastination (Ackerman & Gross, 2005; Balkis & Duru, 2019; Eckert et al., 2016; Fatimah et al., 2011; Haghbin et al., 2012; Krause & Freund, 2016; Mih & Mih, 2016; Schouwenburg, 1992, 1995; Steel, 2007; Zhang et al., 2022).

The available cross-sectional studies provide mixed evidence for the effects of fear of failure on procrastination behavior. While some studies report that fear of failure is not significantly associated with procrastination (e.g., Ackerman & Gross, 2005; Schouwenburg, 1992, 1995), other studies report that procrastination is significantly associated with fear of failure (e.g., Balkis & Duru, 2019; Haghbin et al., 2012; Krause & Freund, 2016; Steel, 2007; Zhang et al., 2022). The inconsistency of research findings on the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination points to the existence of some mechanisms that moderate or mediate the relationship between the two variables (Haghbin et al., 2012). A study was conducted by Haghbin et al. (2012) to test the aforementioned assumptions. The results indicated that competence moderates the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination, while satisfaction with the need for autonomy mediates this relationship. The findings also suggested that the direction of the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination is positive and significant in students with low levels of competence (Haghbin et al., 2012). A recent study has demonstrated that rational beliefs moderate the direct effect of fear of failure on procrastination. The relationship between these two variables is stronger in students with low rational beliefs (Balkis & Duru, 2019). Another variable that could play a role as a mediator in the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination is the difficulties in emotion regulation.

Emotion regulation is conceptualized as a process by which people regulate and change their emotional experiences and expressions to respond appropriately to the ever-changing demands of the environment(Gratz and Roemer (2004). The process of emotion regulation involves the awareness and understanding of the emotions experienced and the acceptance of the emotion in which the person finds themselves. In addition, emotion regulation requires the ability to control one's impulsive behavior, the development of the ability to act according to one's goals, the regulation of one's emotional reactions depending on the situation and individual goals, and the ability to apply these strategies (Gratz & Roemer, 2004). Inadequacies, difficulties, or hardships at any stage of the process can be conceptualized as emotion regulation difficulties, as mentioned earlier (Gratz & Roemer, 2004). In other words, emotion regulation difficulties occur when emotions are not properly regulated. In these situations in which difficulties in emotion regulation occur, it is possible that emotions are not understood and accepted by the person, that strategies for emotion regulation cannot be used, that impulses cannot be controlled when experiencing negative emotions, and that goal-oriented behaviors cannot be carried out (Gratz & Roemer, 2004).

If we consider procrastination in the context of emotion regulation, Pychyl and Sirois (2016) suggest that individuals who exhibit greater impulsivity or weaker self-discipline may be more prone to procrastination as a means of satisfying their desire for short-term mood elevation. In this case, procrastination acts as a kind of emotion regulation strategy. Baumeister and Heatherton (1996) suggest that procrastination functions as short-term emotion regulation when a person tends to delay starting a task that causes anxiety. Following this definition, Tice et al. (2001) state that people are more likely to procrastinate when they are working on a task that triggers an unpleasant feeling and believe that alternative activities can change this emotional state. People who fear failure become anxious when asked to perform their duties and try to reduce their anxiety by postponing work as much as possible (Milgram & Toubiana, 1999). More recent studies have emphasized that having difficulty in effectively regulating unpleasant emotions promotes procrastination behavior (Mohammadi Bytamar et al., 2020). In other words, individuals who are afraid of failure often try to get rid of or distract themselves from unpleasant feelings by avoiding dealing with the problem because they are unable to effectively control and regulate these fears. Therefore, difficulties in emotion regulation may mediate the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination.

Although procrastination can provide temporary relief, it often leads to long-term negative emotions such as stress (Sirois, 2014), anxiety (Gadosey et al., 2021), guilt (Oflazian & Borders, 2023), and regret (Ferrari et al., 2009). In addition, students with high levels of procrastination do not complete their assignments on time, resulting in poorer academic performance (Kim & Seo, 2015), which further reduces their academic satisfaction. The level of procrastination can have a significant impact on students' satisfaction with their academic life, which refers to students’ subjective evaluation of whether their goals and expectations are met by educational activities at school (Li et al., 2013). Previous studies have consistently demonstrated the negative effects of procrastination on academic life satisfaction. For example, Studies have found that students who procrastinate tend to report lower levels of academic satisfaction (Scheunemann et al., 2022), greater dissatisfaction with their school experience (Chow, 2011), and lower overall satisfaction with their studies (Grunschel et al., 2013). These findings suggest that procrastination can lead to a stressful and unsatisfying academic life.

The current study

The present study focuses on the relationships between fear of failure, procrastination, difficulties in emotion regulation, and academic life satisfaction. Although the relationships between these variables are well documented in the existing literature, the mechanisms involved in the interrelationship between these variables are not well understood. Therefore, this study aims to investigate emotion regulation difficulties as a possible mediating mechanism in the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination, as well as the role of emotion regulation difficulties and procrastination behavior as potential mediating mechanisms in the relationship between fear of failure and academic satisfaction. As mentioned earlier, people often procrastinate when confronted with unpleasant feelings and use it as a coping mechanism to put off tasks (Mohammadi Bytamar et al., 2020). While procrastination can temporarily alleviate discomfort, the closer the deadline approaches, the more difficult it becomes to successfully complete tasks, further complicating the problem (Baumeister & Heatherton, 1996). This can lead to negative emotions and unsatisfactory academic performance. Even more clearly, students who fear failure engage in avoidance or procrastination behaviors when they have difficulty regulating this emotion, and their procrastination tendencies may subsequently decrease their academic satisfaction. Based on these explanations, the following hypotheses can be tested:

  • H1: Emotion regulation difficulties would mediate the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination.

  • H2: Procrastination would mediate the relationship between fear of failure, emotion regulation difficulties, and academic satisfaction (Fig. 1). 

    Fig. 1
    figure 1

    The proposed hypothetic model

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Method

Participants

Participants aged 18 years and older were recruited for this study. The current sample consists of 292 students from different academic departments of Pamukkale University. The majority of the sample is female (N = 242, 82.9%), with the remainder being male (N = 50, 17.1%). The age of the participants ranged from 18 to 37 years (mean age = 20.71 years, SD = 2.23 years). Participants in this study were informed that participation in the study was completely voluntary and that they could withdraw from the study at any time. Participants who signed the informed consent form were informed that their data would be treated confidentially at all times. The students received no additional compensation for their participation.

Instruments

Tuckman procrastination scale-Turkish version (TPS-TV)

The TPS-TV is a 14-item self-report measure of procrastination (Özer et al., 2013; Tuckman, 1991). The participants indicated the extent to which they agreed with statements such as "When I have a deadline, I wait until the last minute." The statements are rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly agree, 5 = strongly disagree). The TPS-TV has shown a high internal consistency with a Cronbach alpha of 0.90 (Özer et al., 2013). In the current study, Cronbach's α is 0.88.

The performance failure appraisal ınventory (PFAI-Short-Form)

Turkish version of the PFAI-Short Form (Balkis & Duru, 2019; Conroy et al., 2002) is used to determine participants' fear of failure levels. The PFAI-Short Form contains 5- items. The statements are scored from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). In the current study, Cronbach's α is 0.78.

Difficulties in emotion regulation scale-short form (DERS-16)

The Turkish Version Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale-Short Form (TV-DERS-16; Bjureberg et al., 2016; Gratz & Roemer, 2004; Yiğit & Guzey Yiğit, 2019) is used to determine participants' emotion regulation difficulties. TV-DERS-16 contains 16 items with a five-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (almost never) to 5 (almost always). For the current study, the internal consistency coefficients α are respectively 0.95, 0.90, 0.86, 0.88, 0.90, and 0.84 for overall TV-DERS-16, Clarity, Goals, Impulse, Strategies, and Non-acceptance.

Turkish version academic satisfaction scale (TV-ASS)

The TV-ASS is used to determine the participants' level of academic satisfaction (Balkis, 2013; Schmitt et al., 2008). The TV-ASS includes 5- items. The statements on the scale are scored from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). For the current study, the internal consistency coefficient α is 0.90.

Data analysis

Data analyses are conducted using SPSS 22.0 and AMOS 22.0 within the three steps. First, descriptive analyses to determine the descriptive properties of variables (mean, standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis) are performed. Second, zero-order correlation analyses to examine bivariate associations among fear of failure, difficulties in emotion regulation, procrastination, and academic satisfaction are conducted. Finally, structural equational model (SEM) analyses to examine direct and indirect relationships between fear of failure, difficulties in emotion regulation, procrastination, and academic satisfaction are performed.

In the next step, the most recommended model-data fit statistics and decision rules to test model-data fit are utilized. These are the Chi-square test (p > 0.05 = good model fit, X2/df = 5 ≥  = acceptable), Comparative fit index (CFI), Tucker-Lewis index (TLI) ≥ 0.90 = acceptable, and ≥ 0.95 = good model fit; Root mean square error (RMSEA) and Standardized root mean square (SRMR) 0.08 ≤  = acceptable and 0.05 ≤  = good model fit (Kline, 2015).

Findings

The bivariate correlations between fear of failure, difficulties in emotion regulation, procrastination and academic satisfaction, mean, standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis are shown in Table 1. The results of the correlation analyses indicated that fear of failure was positively correlated with difficulties in emotion regulation and procrastination. Procrastination was also positively correlated with difficulties in emotion regulation and then negatively correlated with academic satisfaction.

Table 1 Descriptive statistics and correlational analyses (N = 292)
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Testing the mediating role of difficulties in emotion regulation

A two-step SEM analysis was conducted to examine the mediating role of emotion regulation difficulties in the relationship between fear of failure, procrastination, and academic satisfaction. Initially, the relationship between latent variables was tested via the measurement model. Then the structural model was tested (Table 2, Fig. 2).

Table 2 Unstandardized parameter estimate of mediation of difficulties in emotion regulation (N = 292)
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Fig. 2
figure 2

The mediating role of difficulties in emotion regulation and procrastination

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The items and the total score were used to determine the latent variables. The fear of failure and academic satisfaction latent variables were identified by using their items. The emotion regulation difficulties latent variable was determined using its subscales. Two parcels were created procrastination latent variable. A measurement model with 4 latent and 17 observed variables was performed.

Testing the measurement model

The measurement model analysis demonstrated that the model provided an acceptable data-model fit: X2(112, N = 292) = 214.696, p < 0.001 (X2/df = 1.917). RMSEA = 0.06 (0.05-0.07), SRMR = 0.05, CFI = 0.96, TLI = 0.96, IFI = 0.96.

Testing the structural model

The findings from SEM analysis indicated that the model was accepted as adequate: X2(114, N = 292) = 218.180, p < 0.001 (X2/df = 1.914). RMSEA = 0.06 (0.05-0.07), SRMR = 0.05, CFI = 0.96, TLI = 0.96, IFI = 0.96.

The parameter estimated noticed that (a) fear of failure was positively associated with difficulties in emotion regulation (p < 0.001) but not procrastination (p = 0.79), (b) difficulties in emotion regulation were positively related to procrastination (p < 0.001), (c) procrastination was negatively related to academic satisfaction (p < 0.001), (d) fear of failure was indirectly related to procrastination via difficulties in emotion regulation (β = 0.35, 95%CI = 0.24, 0.51, p < 0.001), and (e) fear of failure (β = -0.09, 95%CI = -0.15, -0.04, p < 0.001) and difficulties in emotion regulation (β = -0.14, 95%CI = -0.23, -0.06, p < 0.001) were then indirectly associated with academic satisfaction via procrastination. Finally, the fear of failure accounted for 47% of the variance in emotion regulation difficulties. Fear of failure and emotion regulation difficulties accounted for 25% of the variance in procrastination. Together, they accounted for 7% of the variance in academic satisfaction.

Discussion

This study aims to shed light on the dynamic relationship between fear of failure, procrastination, emotional regulation difficulties, and academic satisfaction. The current findings support the mediating role of emotion regulation difficulties in the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination, and the mediating role of procrastination in the relationship between fear of failure, emotion regulation difficulties, and academic satisfaction.

Given the link between fear of failure and procrastination, this study hypothesizes that emotion regulation difficulties will act as a mediating mechanism in this relationship. The results of the correlation analysis demonstrate that procrastination is positively associated with both fear of failure and difficulties in emotion regulation. According to the results of SEM analysis, when emotion regulation difficulties are included in the equation, the direct relationship between fear of failure and procrastination becomes insignificant. In other words, the current results suggest that fear of failure predicts procrastination indirectly through difficulties in emotion regulation and that difficulties in emotion regulation act as a mediating mechanism within this relationship. These results support the assumption that students, who are afraid of failure, do not exhibit procrastination behaviors directly, but they exhibit procrastination behaviors because they cannot regulate their fear. This finding is also consistent with previous evidence in the literature that the inconsistency of research findings on the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination points to the existence of mechanisms that moderate or mediate the relationship between the two variables (Haghbin et al., 2012). Therefore, it is worth noting that the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination is significant for students, who have difficulty regulating their emotions. Gratz and Roemer (2004) state that emotion regulation emphasizes the ability to prevent inappropriate or impulsive behaviors while experiencing negative emotions, and that the absence of these skills indicates the presence of difficulties in emotion regulation to act in accordance with desired goals and outcomes. The results of this study indicate that fear of failure is positively associated with the lack of ability to control impulses and act in accordance with desired goals. Some cross-sectional studies suggest a relationship between fear of failure, performance, mastery-avoidant (Elliot & Sheldon, 1997), and avoidant goal orientation (Conroy et al., 2003). Similarly, previous findings suggest that students with impulsivity (Steel, 2007) and goal avoidance orientation (Corkin et al., 2011; Howell & Buro, 2009; Howell & Watson, 2007; Seo, 2009) are more likely to procrastinate on their tasks and assignments. Current findings on the relationship between fear of failure, difficulties with emotion regulation, and procrastination also support the idea that procrastination functions as a short-term emotion regulation strategy (Pychyl & Sirois, 2016; Sirois & Pychyl, 2013; Tice et al., 2001). Recent evidence suggests that difficulties in regulating unpleasant emotions effectively promote procrastination behavior (Mohammadi Bytamar et al., 2020). As mentioned earlier, research has highlighted that people who are afraid of failure become anxious when asked to perform their duties and try to reduce their anxiety by postponing work as much as possible (Milgram & Toubiana, 1999). In other words, students who cannot cope with the anxiety and tension caused by fear of failure may try to get rid of these negative emotions by postponing their tasks and responsibilities when they have difficulty regulating these negative emotions. Procrastination behavior may be linked to an individual's sense of competence. Similarly, for some individuals with high levels of procrastination, it may serve as an ineffective coping and avoidance strategy in challenging situations. Individuals with a high tendency to procrastinate may exhibit these behaviors to avoid facing feelings of inadequacy and to protect themselves from getting hurt. Although procrastination eliminates the risk of facing these negative emotions and being hurt in the short term, it paves the way for later negative consequences such as low academic achievement, low academic performance, and low academic satisfaction. In fact, the results of this study indicate that fear of failure is not directly related to academic satisfaction, but is indirectly related to academic satisfaction via procrastination. This result is consistent with other research findings in the literature (Balkis, 2013; Balkis & Duru, 2016, 2017). In other words, when students who are afraid of failure are unable to regulate their fear, they are more prone to procrastinating behavior, which can reduce their academic satisfaction through procrastination.

The present study contributes to the literature by demonstrating the role of procrastination and emotion regulation difficulties in the relationship between fear of failure and academic satisfaction. The present findings indicate that there are both direct and indirect relationships between these variables. The results demonstrate the mediating role of emotion regulation difficulties in the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination and of procrastination in the relationship between fear of failure and emotion regulation difficulties and academic satisfaction. These results contribute to the literature by showing that mediating mechanisms and indirect relationships are important rather than showing a direct relationship between fear of failure and academic satisfaction. Psychological counselors can help students with a fear of failure to procrastinate less on academic tasks and achieve higher academic success and satisfaction by providing awareness and skill training in emotion regulation. Similarly, academic satisfaction is not directly impacted by fear of failure. Students may experience lower satisfaction with their academic lives due to procrastination on tasks and assignments when they are unable to regulate their fears. The study by Eckert et al. (2016) revealed that training emotion regulation skills tolerates and changes unpleasant emotions and reduces procrastination. For this reason, it is likely that individual or group studies on emotion regulation reduce procrastination and increase academic satisfaction. Future studies could investigate potential mediating or moderating mechanisms in the relationship between fear of failure and academic satisfaction to gain a comprehensive understanding of the issue. Similarly, this study focuses on general difficulties in emotion regulation. Future studies may focus more specifically on the possible roles of adaptive and maladaptive emotion regulation strategies in the relationship between fear of failure and procrastination, fear of failure, and academic satisfaction.

Finally, the results of this study should be evaluated within its limitations. First, the relationships between the variables should not be viewed as cause-effect relationships, as this study is cross-sectional. Therefore, longitudinal and experimental studies are needed for further clarification. This study was conducted on university students, so the results of this study can be generalized to similar samples. Second, we treated procrastination as a trait in this study because the scales we used capture general traits rather than domain-specific measures of procrastination. We conceptualized procrastination as an individual differences variable (Lay & Schouwenburg, 1993) and a tendency to delay (Tuckman, 1991). There is also some evidence in the literature that procrastination, like personality traits, has sufficient intertemporal and situational stability (Steel, 2007). Because personality traits are a consistent and relatively stable psychological structure, it provides a conceptual framework for understanding, interpreting, and predicting individual behavior. Considering procrastination as a state may be more appropriate in certain contexts (e.g., task-specific dilatory). This approach helps us better understand the dynamics of procrastination and how momentary emotional states (e.g., state anxiety) affect procrastination. In particular, the relationship between procrastination, fear of failure, and emotional regulation difficulties could be examined in more detail. Future research should consider assessing procrastination on a situational basis. This may increase the generalizability and applicability of the results. Including both trait and state measures provides a more comprehensive understanding of procrastination behavior and its underlying mechanisms. Another limitation relates to the gender of the participants. The larger group of participants in this study is females. This point should be considered when commenting on gender-specific results. As a last word, future studies can overcome this limitation through stratified sampling and contribute to the verification of the results.