Sirois (2013): Procrastination and Self-Compassion
Fuschia Sirois's research programme showed that procrastinators consistently report lower self-compassion and higher stress, and that self-compassion buffers the link between procrastination and poor wellbeing. Combined with related work on self-forgiveness, the practical implication is that harsh self-criticism after procrastinating fuels the avoidance cycle, while treating yourself with basic decency breaks it.
| Citation | Sirois, F. M. (2014). Procrastination and stress: Exploring the role of self-compassion. Self and Identity, 13(2), 128–145. |
|---|---|
| Study type | Cross-sectional survey studies across multiple samples |
| Key finding | Lower self-compassion among chronic procrastinators; self-compassion mediates the procrastination–stress link |
| Related result | Wohl, Pychyl & Bennett (2010): students who forgave themselves for procrastinating on one exam procrastinated less on the next |
What the research found
Chronic procrastinators score reliably lower on self-compassion, and much of the stress associated with procrastination runs through that channel: the self-blame after avoiding a task is itself a major source of the negative mood that triggers more avoidance. In the related Wohl et al. experiment, self-forgiveness after procrastinating predicted reduced procrastination on the same task later, the opposite of what a 'be harder on yourself' theory would predict.
Why it matters
Procrastination is mood repair: we avoid tasks to escape how they make us feel. Self-criticism adds guilt and shame to the task, making it more aversive and the next avoidance more likely. This is why the research points toward compassionate course-correction, acknowledge the slip, reduce the friction, restart small, rather than punishment.
Caveats
Much of this evidence is correlational and self-reported; the self-forgiveness experiment is a notable exception. Self-compassion interventions for procrastination specifically are still an active research area.
Peer-reviewed studies in Self and Identity and Personality and Individual Differences; self-forgiveness experiment in Personality and Individual Differences (2010).
https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2013.763404
Wohl, M. J. A., Pychyl, T. A., & Bennett, S. H. (2010). I forgive myself, now I can study. Personality and Individual Differences, 48(7), 803–808. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.01.029
Related
Steel (2007) meta-analysisTwo-Minute Rule (the compassionate restart)
Frequently asked questions
Isn't self-compassion just letting yourself off the hook?
The data says the opposite: self-forgiving students procrastinated less afterwards, not more. Self-compassion in this literature means acknowledging the slip without the shame spiral, then acting, not abandoning the goal.