The Mediating Role of Self-Compassion in the Relationship Between Anxiety and Procrastination

Abstract

Background: Procrastination is common among students. There are inconsistent evidence indicating the relationship between anxiety and procrastination. Similarly, underlying mechanisms of this relationship is not fully understood. One of these mechanisms may be self-compassion that may counteracts the negative effects of anxiety and procrastination. Hence, this research is aimed at investigating the mediating role of self-compassion in the relationship between anxiety and procrastination. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Shahed University. Subjects were selected from different faculties through cluster sampling method. Since a minimum sample size of 200 is necessary for Structural Equation Models, we distributed 300 questionnaires, but 210 questionnaires were appropriate to analysis. Students were asked to answer to tests, including anxiety, self-compassion, and procrastination scale. Results: Anxiety is correlated with procrastination and all subscales of self-compassion. Three components of self-compassion, including self-judgment (r = 0.305, P < 0.001), isolation (r = 0.225, P = 0.001), and over-identification (r = 0.288, P < 0.001) have significant correlation with procrastination. Results of calculation in AMOS showed self-judgment and over-identification explain the relationship between self-compassion and procrastination, and they are full mediators of the relationship between anxiety and procrastination (r = 0.236; P = 0.008; 95% CI (0.069, 0.453). Conclusions: Results are consistent with the researches and theory. There are anxiety provoking factors among students correlated with the academic performance and getting accepted by peers, leading to self-judgment and over identification that are related to negative results such as procrastination.