School of Economics and Management, Zhejiang University of Science and Technology, Hangzhou, 310023, Zhejiang, China.
School of Environment and Natural Resources, Zhejiang University of Science and Technology, Hangzhou, 310023, Zhejiang, China.
Sci Rep. 2024 Jul 6;14(1):15568. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-66293-6.
The issue of academic procrastination is highly prevalent among university students. It not only has a deterimental effect on students' academic performance but also poses a risk to their physical and mental well-being. Anxiety, as a negative emotion, has attracted researchers' attention in relation to academic procrastination. Research indicates a correlation between state anxiety and academic procrastination, but the underlying mechanisms that drive this association remain unclear. When individuals experience ego-depletion, it can lead to psychological exhaustion, subsequently leading to procrastination. Gender role conceptions, shaped by sociocultural and psychological mechanisms, have profound implications on individuals' cognition, emotions, and behaviors. This study primarily aims to explore the relationship between state anxiety and academic procrastination among university students, with a particularly focus on the mediating role of ego-depletion and the moderating role of gender. A survey using the State Anxiety Scale, Ego-Depletion Scale, and Irrational Procrastination Scale was administered to 3370 undergraduates. State anxiety shows positive correlations with ego depletion and academic procrastination (r = 0.665, p < 0.01; r = 0.491, p < 0.01), while ego depletion is also positively linked to academic procrastination (r = 0.500, p < 0.01). State anxiety serves as a positive predictor of academic procrastination, with a confidence interval of 95% [0.626, 0.696]; additionally, ego depletion partially mediates the relationship between state anxiety and academic procrastination, with a confidence interval of 95% [0.168, 0.251]. Gender acts as a moderator in directly predicting the impact of state anxiety on academic procrastination and in the latter stage of mediating the effect of ego depletion. State anxiety can significantly and positively predict academic procrastination among university students. Ego-depletion partially mediates the relationship between state anxiety and academic procrastination. The direct predictive effect of state anxiety on academic procrastination, as well as the mediating role of ego-depletion, is moderated by gender. This provides educators and university students themselves with reference for addressing the issue of academic procrastination.
大学生的学术拖延问题非常普遍。它不仅对学生的学业成绩产生不利影响，还对他们的身心健康构成威胁。焦虑作为一种消极情绪，已经引起了研究者对学术拖延的关注。研究表明，状态焦虑与学术拖延之间存在相关性，但驱动这种关联的潜在机制尚不清楚。当个体经历自我损耗时，会导致心理疲惫，从而导致拖延。性别角色观念是由社会文化和心理机制塑造的，对个体的认知、情感和行为有深远的影响。本研究主要旨在探讨大学生状态焦虑与学术拖延之间的关系，特别关注自我损耗的中介作用和性别角色的调节作用。通过使用状态焦虑量表、自我损耗量表和不合理拖延量表对 3370 名本科生进行了调查。状态焦虑与自我损耗和学术拖延呈正相关(r=0.665，p<0.01；r=0.491，p<0.01)，而自我损耗也与学术拖延呈正相关(r=0.500，p<0.01)。状态焦虑是学术拖延的正向预测指标，95%置信区间为[0.626，0.696]；此外，自我损耗部分中介了状态焦虑与学术拖延之间的关系，95%置信区间为[0.168，0.251]。性别在直接预测状态焦虑对学术拖延的影响以及在自我损耗的后阶段中介效应方面起到调节作用。状态焦虑可以显著正向预测大学生的学术拖延。自我损耗部分中介了状态焦虑与学术拖延之间的关系。状态焦虑对学术拖延的直接预测作用以及自我损耗的中介作用受到性别的调节。这为教育工作者和大学生自身提供了应对学术拖延问题的参考。
