Don't Delay

Understanding procrastination and how to achieve our goals.

Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. is an associate professor of psychology at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, where he specializes in the study of procrastination. See full bio

April 17, 2008, Personality

Comments on "Intransitive preference structures: The procrastination trap"

Intransitive preference structures: The procrastination trap

By Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. on April 17, 2008 in Don't Delay

Moment-to-moment rational decisions can lead to and sustain procrastination (and many other problems like addiction). The theory of intransitive preferences explains both our seemingly irrational delay of desired long-term goals in preference for an immediate reward as well as our regret later. Read More

I'd say that your example of

Submitted by russell on August 4, 2008 - 2:48am.

I'd say that your example of 'intransitive thought' can be explained in transitive:

[doing the report now] < [doing the report later] < [having done the report]

I don't think intransitive thought actually exists.

Does fatalism make procrastination more rational?

Submitted by Carl Hallinan on August 26, 2008 - 9:18am.

Would fatalism make procrastination more rational? If my credo was "live for the moment," rather than "sieze the day," knowing that I could be run over by a bus tommorrow, would you consider my procrastination any less self-deceptive? For example, the smoker might be of two minds: 1) if I stop smoking now, I'll give up a pleasure, but live longer; or 2) if I stop smoking now, I'll give up a pleasure for no purpose if I die next month. In other words, can procrastination be a dilemma between two rational choices, that is repeatedly played out, consiously or sub-consiously?