Sirois (2007): I'll Look After My Health, Later
Fuschia Sirois's 2007 study in Personality and Individual Differences tested the procrastination-health model in community-dwelling adults rather than students. Chronic procrastination was associated with more acute health problems, and the pathway ran through two mediators: procrastinators reported higher stress, and they practised fewer wellness behaviours and delayed things like medical checkups. The model, replicated and extended in Sirois's later work, is the core account of how a work habit becomes a health issue.
| Citation | Sirois, F. M. (2007). "I'll look after my health, later": A replication and extension of the procrastination-health model with community-dwelling adults. Personality and Individual Differences, 43(1), 15–26. |
|---|---|
| Study type | Cross-sectional survey testing a mediation model |
| Sample | 254 community-dwelling adults, extending earlier student findings (Sirois, Melia-Gordon & Pychyl, 2003) |
| Key finding | Procrastination linked to more acute health problems, mediated by higher perceived stress and fewer wellness and treatment-seeking behaviours |
What the study found
Adults completed measures of trait procrastination, perceived stress, wellness behaviours, treatment delay and recent health problems. Higher procrastination went with more reported health complaints, and statistical mediation analysis showed two routes carrying the effect: an indirect stress route, chronic procrastinators live with more background stress, which wears on health, and a behavioural route, they exercise less, eat worse, and put off checkups, dental visits and dealing with symptoms. This replicated the original 2003 student study and showed the pattern holds beyond campus.
Why it matters
It reframes procrastination from a productivity quirk into a health-relevant trait: the same avoidance that delays a report also delays the doctor's appointment. The stress mediation also closes a loop, delay generates stress, and stress worsens both health and self-regulation, feeding further delay. Later work in this programme, including a 2015 study linking trait procrastination to hypertension and cardiovascular disease, and Stead's 2010 mental health findings, builds directly on this model.
Caveats
The design is cross-sectional self-report: procrastination, stress and health were measured at the same time, so mediation here is a statistical model, not demonstrated causation, and poor health could plausibly increase procrastination too. Health problems were self-reported rather than medically verified. Effect sizes are moderate, most procrastinators are not ill, this is a risk gradient, not a diagnosis.
Peer-reviewed study in Personality and Individual Differences, the key adult test of the procrastination-health model. Verified via Crossref.
Related
Stead et al. on procrastination, stress and mental healthSirois & Pychyl on mood repair, the mechanism underneath
Frequently asked questions
Can procrastination affect your health?
The evidence says yes, through two routes: chronic procrastinators carry more stress, and they delay healthy behaviours, exercise, checkups, acting on symptoms. Later research has linked trait procrastination to outcomes as concrete as hypertension. The effect is a gradient of risk, not a guarantee of illness.