Why Do We Procrastinate? Present Bias and Optimism

Zachary Breig, Matthew Gibson and Jeffrey Shrader

No 13060, IZA Discussion Papers from IZA Network @ LISER

Abstract: Research has shown that procrastination has signicant adverse effects on individuals, including lower savings and poorer health. Procrastination is typically modeled as resulting from present bias. In this paper we study an alternative: excessively optimistic beliefs about future demands on an individual's time. The models can be distinguished by how individuals respond to information on their past choices. Experimental results refute the hypothesis that present bias is the sole source of dynamic inconsistency, but they are consistent with optimism. These findings offer an explanation for low takeup of commitment and suggest that personalized information on past choices can mitigate procrastination.

Keywords: real effort; beliefs; dynamic inconsistency; discounting (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D15 D84 D90 J22 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 61 pages
Date: 2020-03
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cbe, nep-evo, nep-exp and nep-hea
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Working Paper: Why Do We Procrastinate? Present Bias and Optimism (2019)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:iza:izadps:dp13060

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