ACADEMIC PROCRASTINATION AND PERFECTIONISM IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF COGNITIVE TEST ANXIETY
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Abstract
University students often experience negative emotions that lead to dysfunctional behaviors, such as academic procrastination, which is considered an avoidance strategy related to perfectionism. In this sense, students who are overly critical of their own performance may experience cognitive test anxiety; thus, they choose to procrastinate on academic activities. Given this, the present study aimed to investigate the extent to which perfectionist traits, mediated by cognitive test anxiety, can explain academic procrastination among university students. This is an empirical study with a quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive, and ex-post-facto approach, with a psychometric, correlational emphasis. The sample was non-probabilistic, accidental, consisting of 448 university students, mostly women (68.7%) from public institutions (79.7%), who were studying psychology (24.8%). Participants were recruited in a collective classroom environment, although the questionnaires were completed individually. After accepting the Free and Informed Consent Form, they received a link to access the data collection instrument. The short version of the Near Perfection Scale, the Test Anxiety Scale, and Tuckman's Procrastination Scale were applied, in addition to sociodemographic questionnaires. Pearson correlation and hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed, which made it possible to test a mediation model, which demonstrated that the test cognitive anxiety variable indirectly and significantly mediated about 12% of the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism (discrepancy) and academic procrastination among university students. It was concluded that maladaptive perfectionism can intensify cognitive anxiety in evaluative situations, which in turn can lead to procrastinatory behaviors.
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