Lower metacognitive abilities predict procrastination: a cross-sectional study of a healthy adult sample

Procrastination, the tendency to delay tasks despite negative consequences, is a widespread issue linked to poor mental health and reduced daily functioning. While often attributed to self-regulation failures, the specific cognitive mechanisms underlying procrastination remain unclear. This study investigates the role of executive functions (EF), measured through both self-report and performance-based tests, in predicting procrastination in adults. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 108 adults (22–65 years) using the Irrational Procrastination Scale (IPS) to measure procrastination. EF was assessed using the self-report measure Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Adult version (BRIEF-A), which includes nine subscales organized in three factors (Behavior Regulation, Emotional Regulation, and Metacognition), and five performance-based tests assessing inhibition, working memory, cognitive flexibility, verbal fluency, and problem solving. Conscientiousness, neuroticism, depression, and rumination were included as covariates in a hierarchical multiple regression analysis. Performance-based EF tests showed that participants performed within the normal to high average range across measures, indicating no clinically significant executive impairments. The BRIEF-A T-scores also reflected average executive functioning across all subscales. However, slightly elevated scores were observed on the Initiate and Working Memory subscales. The BRIEF-A metacognitive factor predicted procrastination best, in particular the Initiate subscale. Conscientiousness and age were also significant predictors, and the final model explained 55% of the variance. Self-reported problems on indices for Emotional and Behavior regulation correlated significantly positively with procrastination, but rendered non-significant when included together with the meta-cognitive index in a regression model. Performance-based EF tests showed no significant associations with procrastination. The findings highlight the importance of metacognitive abilities in understanding procrastination, particularly problems with task initiation. The lack of association with performance-based EF tests underscores the need for real-world measures of EF in procrastination research.