You procastinate: you can blame your genes. In any case, this is what a recent study suggests, which explains that the genetic code gives a “boost” to procrastinators.
“Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow,” said Mark Twain. This famous procrastinator would undoubtedly have been very interested in the recent study by the University of Colorado in Boulder (United States). She says procrastination is written into the genetic code. Published in Psychological Science, it also shows that this character trait is linked to impulsivity, also written in the genes.
The explanation comes from our ancestors
Procrastination and impulsivity have the same roots according to this study. At the heart of the problem: the ability to set a goal and stay the course until success. “Everyone procrastinates from time to time,” acknowledges lead author Daniel Gustavson. “We wanted to know why some procrastinate more than others, and why procrastinators are more likely to be impulsive and act without thinking. Answering this would provide some interesting clues as to what procrastination is, why it occurs, and how to minimize it. “
Several studies have already observed a link between procrastination and impulsivity. This determines a first origin for this association, which takes evolution into account. Our ancestors having uncertain tomorrow, they were looking for immediate results, which explains the impulsiveness. Procrastination comes from a more recent past: no longer needing to ensure immediate survival, our ancestors took the time to set distant goals. But this evolutionary theory ignores the tendency of procrastinators to act on a whim …
A genetic “boost”
To answer this “mystery”, Daniel Gustavson’s team studied 181 pairs of identical twins and 166 pairs of fraternal twins. They observed that procrastination, like impulsiveness, comes from a genetic influence… and there is an overlap between the two character traits. Which suggests that procrastination is a side effect of impulsivity. So it would create an interaction, or rather a distraction, when pursuing a long-term goal. Procrastinators will tend to succumb to short-term reward, abandoning their ultimate goal.
The genetic link between procrastination and impulsivity also intervenes with the ability to manage one’s ambitions, which supports the idea that the facts of postponing, making sudden decisions or failing to accomplish one’s goals all have the same genetic origin. The researchers now want to find out whether these two character traits are linked to cognitive abilities such as executive functions, and whether they influence self-regulation in everyday life. “Learning more about the basics of procrastination could help develop methods to prevent it, and help us overcome our stubborn tendencies to be distracted and lose sight of one’s task,” concludes Gustavson.
However, there is no question of invoking Charles Darwin or Zola and his explanation by heredity for each failure. As the authors point out, this is a genetic influence, a boost so to speak. Education and willpower do the rest.
.
