It’s time for bed! General procrastination and bedtime procrastination as serial mediators of the relationship between temporal perspective and sleep outcomes.

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-3232243/v1

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It’s time for bed! General procrastination and bedtime procrastination as serial mediators of the relationship between temporal perspective and sleep outcomes.

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3232243/v1

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Adequate and sufficient sleep is essential for good health, effective functioning and well-being. However, recent trends indicate an increase in sleep deprivation, with adolescents and young adults being a particularly vulnerable group. General procrastination (GP) and bedtime procrastination (BP), understood as the tendency to delay going to bed without external pressure, are factors that can contribute to sleep deprivation and fatigue. In our study, we used a serial mediation model to test whether the relationship between time perspective and sleep sufficiency and daytime fatigue may be serially mediated by procrastination and bedtime procrastination. The Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory, the Irrational Procrastination Scale, the Bedtime Procrastination Scale, and the Sleep Inventory were completed online by 399 university students between the ages of 19 and 27. Results showed that future time perspective predicted lower general procrastination, which in turn was associated with lower BP, and consequently higher sleep sufficiency and lower daytime fatigue. Past negative time perspective predicted higher GP, which in turn was associated with higher BP and consequently lower sleep sufficiency and higher daytime fatigue. These findings suggest that time perspective, general procrastination and bedtime procrastination may play an important role in predicting sleep sufficiency and daytime fatigue.

Biological sciences/Neuroscience

Biological sciences/Psychology

time perspective

bedtime procrastination

mediation

daytime fatigue

sleep deficiency

Sleep deficiency and associated fatigue is a problem that has a significant impact on both physical and mental health. Numerous studies have demonstrated the adverse health effects of chronic sleep deprivation, including glucose intolerance, diabetes, obesity, impaired immunity, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease ^1–3. Sleep deficiency leads to abnormal functioning of the nervous system and is also associated with neurodegenerative diseases, which further worsen the condition of patients ^4,5. People with sleep deficiency and fatigue are more likely to suffer from overall poor health, mental stress, depressive symptoms and anxiety ^6–8. Insufficient sleep and daytime fatigue worsen cognitive functioning, which leads to lower academic achievement among students ^9,10, lower productivity, and higher susceptibility to errors and accidents among workers ^11,12.

Sleep deficiency is common in Europe ^13,14 and the United States. Analysis of data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) showed a significant increase in the prevalence of short sleep duration (< 7h) among working American adults from 2010 to 2018 (30.9% in 2010 to 35.6% in 2018) ¹⁵. As sleep deficiency is a serious problem affecting the entire population and its incidence is increasing, it is important to investigate its mechanisms, and correlates.

1.1 Time perspective

Previous research has shown that temporal perspective is one of the individual differences significantly associated with sleep ^16–20. Subjective perception of time is an important element of human experience, influencing many areas of life, including health and well-being ^21,22. One of the concepts used to describe it is time perspective, defined as how an individual perceives and values the past, present, and future ²³. The adoption of particular time perspectives can be situationally determined, e.g. planning a holiday may lead to the adoption of a future perspective, whereas enjoying a meal is more conducive to adopting a present perspective. However, the tendency to adopt a particular time perspective (temporal orientation) is considered to be a relatively stable disposition. Temporal orientation develops gradually under the influence of upbringing, personal experience, and socio-cultural factors ²³. An individual may be future, present, or past-oriented to varying degrees, and the emotional appraisal - positive or negative - of a particular time horizon is also important. Temporal perspective affects how information is perceived and interpreted, how goals are set, and how actions are regulated ^24,25.

Zimbardo and Boyd ²³ proposed a theoretical model that posits the existence of five temporal perspectives, including two related to the past (Past Positive and Past Negative), two related to the present (Present Hedonism and Present Fatalism), and one related to the future (Future). The Past Positive perspective is characterized by a positive and nostalgic attitude towards the past, whereas the Past Negative perspective is characterized by a negative and aversive attitude towards the past. The Present Hedonism dimension is associated with a focus on pleasure and entertainment in the present, and a reluctance to assess the risks of actions taken and to postpone rewards. Present Fatalistic is defined as a focus on the present due to a lack of hope and a sense of control over the future. The last dimension, future orientation, relates to long-term planning and decision-making based on anticipated future scenarios. An individual's temporal orientation as a trait is a combination of several dimensions, the dominant ones of which have the greatest impact on cognitive, affective, motivational and self-regulatory processes ^25–28.

Time perspective provides a cognitive framework that is used when making decisions about short- and long-term goals, including those related to education, work, and health ²⁹. Several studies have shown an association between time perspective and sleep patterns, sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness ^16–20 but the results of these studies are not consistent.

1.2 General Procrastination and bedtime procrastination

General procrastination is the tendency to put off important tasks and responsibilities despite the negative consequences of such behavior ³⁰. Procrastination is thought to be closely related to time perception. Instead of pursuing long-term plans, procrastinators tend to focus on current tasks or activities that are more satisfying or easier to accomplish. Putting things off is often a way of avoiding the stress of tasks that are tedious, difficult, or demanding. Furthermore, failing to plan and estimate the time needed to complete a task leads to delays ³⁰. Research shows that general procrastination can lead to negative health effects, including poorer sleep outcomes ³¹. Sleep deprivation and associated daytime fatigue can sometimes be caused by insomnia. However, in the general population, it is often the result of deliberately postponing bedtime when one has to get up in the morning. Unnecessary delays in going to bed that are not driven by situational demands, despite their predictable negative consequences, have been termed bedtime procrastination by Kroese et al. ³². Numerous studies have shown that sleep procrastination, as a specific form of procrastination, is associated with fewer hours of sleep, feeling sleep-deprived, and daytime fatigue ^32–34. The association between sleep measures and sleep procrastination was also shown to be stronger than the association between sleep measures and general procrastination ³². More than half of the subjects surveyed by Kroese et al. ³⁵ reported going to bed later than they had originally intended. A similar percentage reported feeling tired during the day, while three-quarters of those who delayed sleep felt that their behavior was causing them problems. The majority of high school students surveyed by Kadzikowska-Wrzosek ³⁶ admit to going to bed later than planned, resulting in insufficient sleep and feeling tired during the day. Bedtime procrastination is associated with time perspective, as are other types of health procrastination related to physical activity and diet ^37,38.

Several studies have shown an association between time perspective and sleep and fatigue ^16–20. However, the mechanisms underlying this relationship remain poorly understood. Given its temporal nature, general procrastination and bedtime procrastination seem to be plausible mediators linking time perspective and sleep. Our study aimed to investigate the effect of time perspective on sleep insufficiency and daytime fatigue and to determine whether general procrastination and bedtime procrastination mediate this relationship.

Based on the previously established relationships between the dimensions of time perspective and other variables (such as depression), as well as the relationships between rumination and past negative perspective in previous studies, we expected that higher scores on future time perspective would be associated with a lower sense of sleep insufficiency and fatigue, while higher scores on past negative time perspective would be associated with a greater sense of sleep insufficiency and fatigue, and these relationships would be mediated by general procrastination and bedtime procrastination.

2.1 Subjects

In this study, we examined responses obtained from an anonymous online survey involving 399 university students (357 females) with ages ranging from 19 to 27 years (mean age: 21.7; standard deviation: 1.83). The participants were enrolled at the Pedagogical University of Krakow, where they were pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees in a variety of academic disciplines. They volunteered for the research and earned academic credit as a reward for their participation. All of the respondents gave their informed consent, and they were allowed to withdraw from the survey without being required to provide any explanation. To ensure anonymity, responses were recorded in a way that prevented identifying individual participants.

2.2 Measures

2.2.1 Bedtime Procrastination Scale

The severity of bedtime procrastination was measured using the Bedtime Procrastination Scale (BPS) ³². The scale is a self-report questionnaire, that consist of nine items (4 positively worded and 5 negatively worded), describing various behaviors related to going to bed. The subject is to determine the frequency of a given procedure on a 5-point Likert scale: from 1 = ‘(almost) never’ to 5 = ‘(almost) always’. The BPS score is calculated by adding up the points for the entire test (after inverting scores for the negative worded statements) and dividing them by the number of items. The higher score, the greater bedtime procrastination. The authors of the Polish version of BPS confirmed its satisfactory psychometric properties ³⁴. The values of Cronbach’s alpha range from 0.83 to 0.86, which confirms the good internal consistency of this method. The temporal stability, assessed by Pearson correlation for the results of a 10-week test-retest, was 0.68.

2.2.2 Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory

Time Perspective was assessed by the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI) ²³. The questionnaire consists of 56 items (of which 5 are negatively worded and the rest is positively worded), describing various beliefs and behaviors. The respondent is to assess on a 5-point scale how typical or true a given statement is for him (1 = ‘very uncharacteristic’, 2 = ‘uncharacteristic’, 3 = ‘neutral’, 4 = ‘characteristic’, and 5 = ‘very characteristic’). The result is obtained in 5 subscales, relating to different time perspectives: Past-Negative, Present-Hedonistic, Future, Past-Positive, Present-Fatalistic. The score for each factor is calculated by adding up the points for the questions assigned to a given subscale and dividing them by the number of these questions. Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient for the five subscales of the original ZTPI version range from 0,74 to 0,82. Test-retest reliabilities of these subscales range from 0,70 to 0,80 for the result over a 4-week period.

2.2.3 Irrational Procrastination Scale

The Irrational Procrastination Scale (IPS) is a self-report questionnaire developed by Steel ³⁹. The scale consists of nine items, six of which are positively worded and three of which are negatively worded. Respondents rate each item on a five-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (labelled "very rarely or not true for me") to 5 (labelled "very often or true for me"). The scores for the three negatively worded items are reverse-scored before the mean of all nine items is calculated to obtain the IPS score. The resulting score ranges from 1 to 5 and reflects the extent to which an individual exhibits irrational delays in decision-making and task completion resulting in procrastination. The scores of the English version have demonstrated good internal consistency, as evidenced by a Cronbach's alpha value of .91.

2.2.4 Self-assessment of sleep outcomes

Responses to the question "On average, how many days a week do you feel tired during the day?" were provided on a five-point response scale (0 days/never | 1–2 days | 3–4 days | 5–6 days | 7 days/always) and were used as a self-reported measure of sleep-related daytime fatigue. Experienced sleep sufficiency was assessed by responses to the question "To what extent do you feel the number of hours you usually get is sufficient?" using a four-point response scale (completely insufficient | somewhat insufficient | somewhat sufficient | completely sufficient).

2.3 Statistical Analysis

First, descriptive statistics of the scores on the scales of the questionnaire tool were analyzed. Means with 95% confidence intervals and medians were used as measures of central tendency. Standard deviations and interquartile ranges were used to describe the dispersion of scores. Skewness and kurtosis were used to examine the shape of the distribution of the scores and their possible deviations from normality. Correlation analysis was then performed with a two–tailed significance test between the scores on the scales of the questionnaire tool and the responses given to the question about the average frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue and self-perceived sleep sufficiency. Pearson's r or Spearman's rho correlation coefficients were used, depending on the level of measurement of the variables analyzed. The criterion for statistical significance was set at a p–value of less than 0.05.

Subsequently, two multiple outcome serial mediation analyses were conducted in a structural equation modeling approach to test whether general procrastination and bedtime procrastination mediated the effects of time perspective on self–reported sleep and self-reported sleep sufficiency and frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue. Thus, in the analytic approach we adopted, the responses to the question about sleep sufficiency and the average frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue during the day were the response variables, while the scores on the IPS scores and the BPS scores were the mediating variables. In the serial mediation model tested, the intermediate path from ZTPI scores to both sleep outcomes passed through IPS scores and then through BPS scores because general procrastination was considered primary to bedtime procrastination. In the initial mediation model, scores on all five ZTPI scales were entered as explanatory variables. A final model with fewer explanatory variables was then constructed to reduce the number of parameters in the model and to obtain a clearer pattern of relationships. To do this, scores on those ZTPI scales that did not show an association with the mediating variables or with the dependent variables were removed from the initial model.

The diagonally weighted least squares (DWLS) estimation method was chosen because the level of measurement of the self–reported sleep sufficiency and the average frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue was ordinal. Standardized parameter estimates were calculated and then tested for significance using bootstrapped 95% confidence intervals for direct effects, indirect effects, and their components. The accelerated bias–corrected percentile bootstrap method with 1000 resamples was used. If the bootstrapped 95% confidence intervals around the parameter estimates did not include zero, they were considered significant at the 0.05 threshold. SEMLj: the jamovi SEM analysis module ⁴⁰, which runs on top of the lavaan R package ⁴¹, was used to conduct the mediation analyses. Jamovi ⁴² is a free and open–source statistical software. It is based on the R programming language for statistical computing ⁴³. The path diagram was drawn using draw.io desktop ⁴⁴, a free and open–source graph drawing software.

Descriptive statistics for the scores on the IPS, BPS, and ZPTI scales are presented in Table 1.

Table 1

Descriptive statistics for the scores on the scales of the questionnaire tools.
Variable	Mean	95% CI		Median	SD	IQR	Skewness	Kurtosis
Variable	Mean	Lower	Upper	Median	SD	IQR	Skewness	Kurtosis
General procrastination	3.06	3.00	3.12	3.0	0.603	0.78	0.121	0.179
Bedtime procrastination	3.37	3.29	3.46	3.4	0.876	1.22	‒0.360	‒0.487
Past negative TP	3.25	3.18	3.31	3.2	0.625	0.90	0.062	‒0.095
Present hedonistic TP	3.37	3.32	3.42	3.4	0.502	0.60	0.044	0.196
Future TP	3.25	3.20	3.31	3.2	0.543	0.73	‒0.186	0.335
Past positive TP	3.45	3.40	3.50	3.4	0.540	0.61	‒0.338	0.499
Present fatalistic TP	2.96	2.91	3.01	3.0	0.516	0.56	0.184	0.468
Note. CI: confidence interval; TP: time perspective.

Correlations between general procrastination, bedtime procrastination, the five time perspectives and the responses to questions about the average frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue and self‒perceived sleep sufficiency are shown in Table 2. General procrastination correlates positively with bedtime procrastination, past negative time perspective, present fatalistic time perspective, and negatively with future time perspective. Bedtime procrastination is negatively correlated with future time perspective. The average frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue and the self‒perceived sleep sufficiency are negatively correlated. The average frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue is positively associated with bedtime procrastination, past negative time perspective, and present fatalistic time perspective but negatively associated with past positive time perspective. The self‒perceived sleep sufficiency is negatively associated with bedtime procrastination, and positively associated with future time perspective.

Table 2

Correlations between the scores on the scales of the questionnaire tool and the responses given to the question about the average frequency of experiencing daytime fatigue and self‒perceived sleep sufficiency.
Variable	Correlation coefficient	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
1. General procrastination
2. Bedtime procrastination	Pearson's r	.224***
3. Past negative TP	Pearson's r	.301***	.122*
4. Present hedonistic TP	Pearson's r	.091	.059	.253***
5. Future TP	Pearson's r	‒.348***	‒.207***	.151**	.004
6. Past positive TP	Pearson's r	‒.033	‒.036	‒.033	.323***	.282***
7. Present fatalistic TP	Pearson's r	.242***	.094	.426***	.378***	‒.169***	‒.012
8. Daytime fatigue	Spearman's rho	.086	.256***	.170***	‒.059	‒.059	‒.111*	.105*
9. Sleep sufficiency	Spearman's rho	‒.039	‒.324***	‒.043	.017	.099*	.061	‒.083	‒.488***
Note. * p < .05, p < .01, * p < .001

Based on the results of the initial mediation analysis, the past negative time perspective and the future time perspective were entered into the final serial mediation model as explanatory variables. The results of the final serial mediation model are presented in Table 3 and Fig. 1. The past negative time perspective was directly related to daytime fatigue, but not to sleep sufficiency. The future time perspective did not show a direct significant relationship with either daytime fatigue or sleep sufficiency. Components of the direct effects with estimates significantly greater than zero included the following paths: from the past negative time perspective to general procrastination, from the past negative time perspective to bedtime procrastination, from general procrastination to bedtime procrastination, and from bedtime procrastination to daytime fatigue. The paths from the future time perspective to general procrastination and bedtime procrastination, and from bedtime procrastination to sleep sufficiency, were the components of the direct effects with estimates significantly less than zero. All of the indirect effects composed of the components with significant estimates were also found to be statistically significant. All of the other indirect effects were found to be not statistically significant.

Table 3

Standardized estimates with bootstrapped 95% confidence intervals for indirect effects and their components, and direct effects in mediation analysis.
Effect type	Path	Label	Standardized estimate	Standard error	95% Confidence Intervals
Effect type	Path	Label	Standardized estimate	Standard error	Lower	Upper
Indirect effects	PNTP ⇒ GP ⇒ BP	a1*c	.047	.022	.009	.096
	FTP ⇒ GP ⇒ BP	a2*c	‒.052	.023	‒.103	‒.010
	PNTP ⇒ GP ⇒ BP ⇒ Fatigue	a1ce1	.010	.005	.002	.023
	PNTP ⇒ GP ⇒ BP ⇒ Sufficiency	a1ce2	‒.015	.007	‒.032	‒.003
	PNTP ⇒ GP ⇒ Fatigue	a1*d1	‒.005	.020	‒.042	.035
	PNTP ⇒ GP ⇒ Sufficiency	a1*d2	.021	.020	‒.015	.060
	PNTP ⇒ BP ⇒ Fatigue	b1*e1	.024	.014	.004	.062
	PNTP ⇒ BP ⇒ Sufficiency	b1*e2	‒.035	.019	‒.077	‒.004
	FTP ⇒ GP ⇒ BP ⇒ Fatigue	a2ce1	‒.011	.006	‒.025	‒.002
	FTP ⇒ GP ⇒ BP ⇒ Sufficiency	a2ce2	.016	.008	.003	.035
	FTP ⇒ GP ⇒ Fatigue	a2*d1	.005	.022	‒.038	.045
	FTP ⇒ GP ⇒ Sufficiency	a2*d2	‒.023	.022	‒.067	.016
	FTP ⇒ BP ⇒ Fatigue	b2*e1	‒.038	.015	‒.074	‒.013
	FTP ⇒ BP ⇒ Sufficiency	b2*e2	.056	.020	.020	.096
	GP ⇒ BP ⇒ Fatigue	c*e1	.028	.014	.005	.058
	GP ⇒ BP ⇒ Sufficiency	c*e2	‒.041	.019	‒.080	‒.006
Components of indirect effects	PNTP ⇒ GP	a1	.361	.048	.252	.447
	FTP ⇒ GP	a2	‒.403	.050	‒.491	‒.292
	PNTP ⇒ BP	b1	.110	.057	.010	.218
	FTP ⇒ BP	b2	‒.179	.056	‒.279	‒.057
	GP ⇒ BP	c	.129	.056	.018	.238
	GP ⇒ Fatigue	d1	‒.013	.054	‒.041	.163
	GP ⇒ Sufficiency	d2	.057	.055	‒.111	.093
	BP ⇒ Fatigue	e1	.213	.051	.114	.313
	BP ⇒ Sufficiency	e2	‒.316	.049	‒.413	‒.216
Direct effects	PNTP ⇒ Fatigue	DIRECT 1	.176	.058	.061	.280
	FTP ⇒ Fatigue	DIRECT 2	‒.066	.057	‒.177	.043
	PNTP ⇒ Sufficiency	DIRECT 3	‒.055	.053	‒.154	.050
	FTP ⇒ Sufficiency	DIRECT 4	.067	.062	‒.053	.187
Note. PNTP: Past negative time perspective, FTP:Future time perspective, GP: General procrastination, BP: bedtime procrastination, Fatigue: self‒reported daytime fatigue, Sufficiency: self‒reported sleep sufficiency

In our study, we were able to show for the first time that the relationship between the future time perspective and daytime fatigue and sleep sufficiency was negative and that this relationship was serially mediated by general procrastination and bedtime procrastination. We also found that the association between future time perspective and higher sleep sufficiency and lower daytime fatigue was also directly mediated by bedtime procrastination, without the involvement of general procrastination. Furthermore, our results showed that the relationship between past negative time perspective and daytime fatigue and sleep sufficiency was positive, and this relationship was also serially mediated by general procrastination. In addition, it was demonstrated that the association between past negative time perspective and higher sleep sufficiency and lower daytime fatigue was also directly mediated by bedtime procrastination without the involvement of general procrastination. The past negative time perspective was also found to be directly related to daytime fatigue.

Our results show that a high level of the future time perspective was associated with a lower tendency for general procrastination. In other words, people with higher future orientation are less likely to postpone activities without a compelling reason. Lower levels of general procrastination were associated with a lower tendency to delay going to bed unnecessarily. In turn, going to bed at an appropriate time was associated with a greater sense of sleep sufficiency and less daytime fatigue.

Our findings are consistent with existing knowledge about the relationship between time perspective, procrastination, and sleep-related behaviors, as well as other health-related behaviors. Future orientation is widely believed to promote healthier lifestyles. The future time perspective was positively associated with lower BMI, healthy diet, exercise, and not smoking ^45–47. A positive relationship between the future time perspective and sleep outcomes has also been shown, which is consistent with our findings. However, previous studies have not examined mediators of this relationship ⁴⁸.

Our study found that the relationship between the future time perspective and sleep sufficiency and daytime fatigue was serially mediated by general procrastination and a specific form of procrastination - bedtime procrastination. A higher future time perspective was associated with a lower tendency to procrastinate in general, i.e., people with a higher future time orientation were less likely to delay action. The finding of a negative relationship between future time orientation and general procrastination is consistent with reports from previous studies ^49,50. These findings can be explained by considering that future time perspective is related to episodic future thinking, which allows people to imagine and plan for events that may occur in the future. Procrastinators, on the other hand, have difficulty with forward and future-oriented thinking, and they find distant rewards less attractive than immediate rewards ^51,52.

A high future time perspective increases the tendency to focus on long-term goals and take consistent steps towards achieving them, which also means less procrastination on tasks. ²⁹. Procrastination involves choosing short-term benefits over long-term benefits, which affects many areas of life, including health. General procrastination has been confirmed to be associated with lower engagement in health-promoting behaviors, such as healthy eating, physical activity, and health screenings ^53–57, as well as a greater propensity to engage in health-damaging behaviors, such as the use of various recreational drugs ⁵⁸. Hen and Goroshit's ⁵⁹ study of procrastination in various life domains showed that most procrastination occurred in health-related activities.

Our research has shown that general procrastination is positively related to bedtime procrastination, meaning that people who tend to procrastinate in general are also more likely to procrastinate at bedtime. Since bedtime procrastination is considered a specific form of procrastination ^32,35, these results seem understandable. The link between general procrastination and bedtime procrastination may be due to similar mechanisms, such as difficulty anticipating the distant consequences of one's actions and low self-regulation ³⁵. People with low procrastination levels are more likely to plan and organize their time, which helps them avoid putting off important tasks and responsibilities. As a result, these individuals are less likely to postpone sleep, which in turn leads to better sleep quality and less fatigue during the day.

Our study showed that the association between future time perspective and higher sleep sufficiency and lower daytime fatigue was also directly mediated by bedtime procrastination, without the involvement of general procrastination. The future time perspective provides the ability for anticipation, prediction, and long-term planning. Surfing the web and watching a TV series provides instant gratification, while going to bed early is less enjoyable in the short term, but has long-term benefits. The future time perspective is associated with a greater awareness of the consequences of one's decisions and behaviors ⁶⁰, which may make future-oriented individuals more likely to consider the negative consequences of sleep procrastination including sleep deprivation, fatigue, and feeling bad the next day. This can lead to a reduction in bedtime procrastination and consequently an increase in getting enough sleep. The results of our study are in line with previous findings showing that the future time perspective is inversely correlated with bedtime procrastination ^37,38. Our results suggest that difficulties in creating episodic simulation of future events may lead to procrastinatory behavior, including bedtime procrastination, which leads to sleep insufficiency and daytime fatigue.

The close link between procrastination and future time perspective seems to be supported by studies showing a convergence of neural correlates of both phenomena. Future time perspective was found to be negatively correlated with parahippocampal cortex ^61,62 and ventromedial prefrontal cortex volume ⁶¹. Additionally, Hu et al. ⁶³ and Chen et al. ⁶⁴ found that procrastination was positively associated with parahippocampal cortex and orbitofrontal cortex volume. These findings are consistent with reports from functional neuroimaging (fMRI) studies showing activity in the medial temporal lobe and ventral medial prefrontal cortex during imagining future events ^65,66, and parahippocampal and ventral medial prefrontal cortex activity associated with procrastination ^67,68.

The hippocampus and other regions of the medial temporal lobe, including the parahippocampal cortex, play an important role in episodic prospection, the ability to construct scenarios for the future based on past experience ⁶⁶. Cooperation between the hippocampus and other regions of the medial temporal lobe and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and orbitofrontal cortex appears to enable people to value distant goals and pursue long-term plans without delay, making decisions that prioritize long-term benefits over immediate rewards ⁶⁹. Taken together, this suggests that individual differences in the structure or function of the episodic network, which includes the parahippocampal cortex and ventromedial prefrontal cortex, are associated with both future time perspective and procrastination, and thus with health behaviors, including sleep-related behaviors.

In contrast, the past negative time perspective is associated with a focus on negative past experiences and a lower propensity to pursue long-term goals that are important to the individual ²³. Lack of a future-oriented attitude and focus on negative emotions is associated with higher general procrastination and bedtime procrastination, thus leading to both sleep insufficiency and greater daytime fatigue.

The past negative time perspective is associated with negative emotionality as evidenced by studies showing its associations with neuroticism, negative affect ⁷⁰, high-perceived stress ⁷¹ and trait anxiety ⁷². Meanwhile, Sirois & Pychyl (Sirois & Pychyl, 2013) believe that procrastination may serve mood regulation by engaging in pleasurable activities to improve mood at the expense of task completion and long-term plans. People with a high past negative time perspective attempt to regulate their emotions by engaging in immersive entertainment, such as TV series or Internet use. The past negative time perspective correlated with problematic Internet use ⁷⁴. It was also a positive predictor of Internet and Facebook addiction, while future time perspective was a negative predictor ⁷⁵. Computer use was one of the most common activities during bedtime procrastination ³⁵. These reports are consistent with the results of our study, which showed that past negative time perspective increases general procrastination and bedtime procrastination, which in turn affects nighttime sleep. Engaging in pleasurable activities that provide immediate gratification allows one to escape from unpleasant feelings or boring, repetitive tasks, such as routine bedtime activities that do not provide an immediate reward. Procrastination as a means of mood regulation only alleviates negative emotions in the short term at the expense of achieving more distant goals, such as feeling rested the next day (Sirois & Pychyl, 2013).

Recalling past events activates the same regions of the brain as simulating hypothetical events ⁶⁶. Past experiences are assumed to provide a basis for constructing possible future events and rely on similar cognitive processes. This may suggest that temporal perspective is rooted in the operation of an episodic network that allows for mental time travel into both the future and the past and thus may underlie both future and past temporal perspective. However, this issue warrants further investigation, as research on the brain correlates of the past negative time perspective has been sparse and inconclusive. Moreover, the past negative time perspective is much more strongly related to affective factors than the future time perspective. This makes the neural basis of this time perspective more complex since it involves activity in emotional system structures, not just structures that make up the episodic network. Thus, not only the structures of the episodic network but also the structures of the emotional network may underlie the past negative time perspective ^{62 76}.

Our results show that past negative time perspective is also directly related to daytime fatigue, without the mediating role of procrastination. They are consistent with previous reports that past negative time perspective is associated with poorer sleep and greater daytime sleepiness ^16,17. Many studies have found links between negative past time perspective and neuroticism (e.g., Herzog-Krzywoszanska et al.⁷⁷). A study by Duggan et al. ⁷⁸ showed that neuroticism is a strong predictor of poor sleep hygiene, poor sleep quality, and increased sleepiness. People who focus on negative aspects of the past are more likely to experience negative affect and are more sensitive to negative stimuli, leading to increased activation of the emotional system and difficulty regulating emotions ⁷¹. As a result, these individuals have difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep, which can lead to an increased experience of daytime sleepiness. In addition, the past negative time perspective is associated with rumination, which is thought to worsen sleep ⁷⁹. People with a negative time perspective in the past may engage in rumination about negative past experiences, which can affect their sleep quality and feelings of fatigue the next day.

Summarizing the main results of the current study, it can be concluded that the future time perspective has a positive effect on reducing general procrastination and bedtime procrastination, which in turn leads to less sleep deprivation and daytime fatigue. On the other hand, the past negative time perspective seems to lead to greater task procrastination, which is reflected in difficulties in securing time for sleep and, consequently, to a lower sense of sleep sufficiency and increased daytime fatigue. Importantly, the mediating effects found may point to a specific mechanism by which future time perspective has a beneficial effect on nighttime sleep and daytime fatigue. It involves a reduction in the postponement of tasks, both in general and related to going to bed. This suggests that intervention strategies aimed at developing a future time perspective and reducing procrastination may have important practical implications. These are particularly relevant to the health and well-being of individuals, as they can play a significant role in the quantity and quality of sleep and energy levels during the day. Conscious and proactive time management and procrastination reduction can improve sleep quality and overall daytime functioning. People who can effectively manage their tendency to procrastinate and plan their sleep are more likely to feel better through improved sleep length and quality. Reduced fatigue during the day can thus contribute to increased energy and efficiency in study, work, and daily activities. However, these suggestions need to be confirmed in further studies that are carried out using experimental methods and a longitudinal approach.

Limitations of the current study include the use of a cross-sectional approach, which does not allow causal relationships to be identified directly. However, the cross-sectional approach we used should be considered appropriate for an initial exploration of this area of research. With the methodology used, the results obtained provide a good starting point for further research that will be conducted using other research methods and approaches. It should also be noted that the use of self-report techniques may have some limitations. Self-reported data may be affected by recall bias. They may also be subject to social desirability bias and the influence of other social factors that can affect the accuracy of self-report measures. Therefore, extending self-reporting methods to other research techniques should be considered in future research. In particular, research systems based on wearable devices seem to be promising methodological solutions that are worthy of being used in further research. In addition, electronic techniques using experience sampling methodology or other techniques based on the daily diary method may prove very useful in further research. They should allow the acquisition of diverse data from a wide variety of time samples, recorded over relatively long time intervals under the natural conditions in which the subjects live.

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Author Contributions

R.H.K. contributed to the concept and the study design; R.H.K. and L.K. were involved in the investigation and methodology; L.K. contributed to data curation, performed statistical analysis, validated the findings, created visualizations and provided technical resources for the research; R.H.K. supervised the study and secured funding for the project; R.H.K., L.K., and B.J. drafted the original manuscript and participated in its review and editing. All authors reviewed and provided feedback on the draft and subsequently approved the final manuscript for submission.

Funding

Funds for publication costs were granted to the authors under the application number DNWZ.711.129.PBU.2022 from a research subsidy for the maintenance and development of research potential that was awarded to the Pedagogical University of Krakow by the Polish Ministry of Education and Science.

Data Availability Statement

The data supporting the findings of this study will be made available by the authors to qualified researchers upon reasonable request.

Ethics Statement

The studies involving human participants were reviewed and approved by the Faculty Committee for Research Ethics, Faculty of Pedagogy, Pedagogical University of Kraków. The participants provided their informed consent to participate in this study.

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It’s time for bed! General procrastination and bedtime procrastination as serial mediators of the relationship between temporal perspective and sleep outcomes.

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Abstract

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1 Introduction

2 Method

2.1 Subjects

2.2 Measures

2.2.1 Bedtime Procrastination Scale

2.2.2 Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory

2.2.3 Irrational Procrastination Scale

2.2.4 Self-assessment of sleep outcomes

2.3 Statistical Analysis

3 Results

4 Discussion

Declarations

Competing interests

Author Contributions

Funding

Data Availability Statement

Ethics Statement

References

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