The best-known types of procrastination come from research: arousal and avoidant procrastination (Joseph Ferrari, 1992), later joined by decisional procrastination, and active versus passive procrastination (Angela Chu and Jin Nam Choi, 2005). Popular lists add styles such as the perfectionist, the dreamer and the worrier. Later research has not supported most of these as distinct kinds of procrastinator, so the more useful question is why you are delaying one particular task.
Key Takeaways
- Ferrari’s arousal and avoidant types, later joined by decisional procrastination, are the most cited research typology. A 2010 analysis of 17 studies found the arousal and avoidant measures were closely related, and it did not support the three-type model.
- “Active procrastination”, deliberately working under pressure, is disputed: many researchers see it as planned delay. A 2019 study of 1,605 students found no achievement benefit from it.
- Bedtime procrastination, studied since 2014, is a domain of delay: going to bed later than you meant to with nothing stopping you.
- Popular lists, such as Linda Sapadin’s six styles, Rory Vaden’s three types and Itamar Shatz’s nine, come from books, and none has been tested as a typology.
- What every kind of delay shares is a task that feels unpleasant and the quick relief of putting it off.
What are the types of procrastination?
The types of procrastination fall into three groups. Research typologies sort people by why they delay (arousal, avoidance or indecision) or by how deliberate the delay is (active or passive). Domain types describe where procrastination happens, such as bedtime or study. Popular styles describe personalities, like the perfectionist or the crisis-maker. The table shows each and how much evidence supports it.
| Typology | Types | Origin | How well supported |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ferrari and others | Arousal, avoidant, decisional | Research, 1992 onwards | Weak: later analyses found arousal and avoidant overlap |
| Chu and Choi | Active, passive | Research, 2005 | Disputed: “active” may not be procrastination at all |
| By domain | Bedtime, academic, health, decisional | Research, various | Useful descriptions of where delay happens |
| Linda Sapadin | Perfectionist, dreamer, worrier, defier, crisis-maker, overdoer | Book, 1996 | Not tested |
| Rory Vaden | Classic, creative avoidance, priority dilution | Book, 2015 | Not tested |
| Itamar Shatz | Nine types, from worrier to burnout | Book, 2026 | Built from existing studies; no new data |
Arousal, avoidant and decisional procrastination
The first two types come from psychologist Joseph Ferrari, and decisional procrastination was added to them later. Arousal procrastinators delay for the thrill of a last-minute rush. Avoidant procrastinators delay to avoid fear of failure or of being judged. Decisional procrastinators put off making decisions. Ferrari’s model is the most cited typology and the one most articles repeat without checking.
The model began with a 1992 study in which two procrastination questionnaires correlated very weakly with each other (r = .07 across three samples), which suggested they measured different things. Ferrari labelled one “arousal” and the other “avoidant”. Later work did not support that reading. In a 2009 study of 311 students, Kyle Simpson and Timothy Pychyl found that arousal-seeking personality traits were not related to the measures of procrastination.
The strongest test came from Piers Steel in 2010. Across 17 studies with 3,638 participants, the two questionnaires correlated at .71, and Steel described the 1992 result as an outlier. Adding a new sample of 4,169 people, he concluded that the evidence “does not support the tripartite model, particularly the avoidant and arousal distinction”. Decisional procrastination was the only one of the three that kept some potential to be distinct. If you put off decisions in particular, our guide to analysis paralysis covers that pattern.
What are the two types of procrastination?
The two types usually meant are active and passive procrastination, from a 2005 paper by Angela Chu and Jin Nam Choi. Passive procrastinators delay because they cannot get started and then feel the pressure. Active procrastinators choose to delay because they say they work better under pressure, and meet their deadlines. In the original study, active procrastinators looked more like non-procrastinators on time use and performance.
Later researchers questioned whether active procrastination is procrastination at all. Procrastination is usually defined as delaying something you intend to do even though you expect to be worse off for it, and a planned delay that works does not fit that definition. In a 2019 study of 1,605 science and engineering students, Maarten Pinxten and colleagues found no evidence that purposeful delay improved achievement, and could not find a group of students for whom it did. If you are choosing to do useful things before a hard task, our article on productive procrastination covers when that helps.
Bedtime procrastination and other domains
Some types describe where the delay happens rather than who does it. Bedtime procrastination is the clearest example: going to bed later than you intended, when nothing external is stopping you. Academic procrastination, health procrastination (putting off a check-up) and decisional procrastination are other domains researchers study.
Floor Kroese and colleagues introduced bedtime procrastination in 2014. In a survey of 177 adults, people who procrastinated more at bedtime had lower self-regulation, and they reported getting insufficient sleep even after accounting for demographics and self-regulation. The survey was a snapshot, so it cannot show which came first.
The popular procrastination styles
Most articles on the topic use one of three book-based lists. Linda Sapadin described six styles in her 1996 book It’s About Time!: the perfectionist, dreamer, worrier, defier, crisis-maker and overdoer. Rory Vaden’s 2015 book Procrastinate on Purpose named three: classic procrastination, creative avoidance and priority dilution. In 2026, a University of Cambridge press release presented nine types from Itamar Shatz’s book Solving Procrastination, from the worrier to the burnout type, and some coverage described the book as a study.
These lists can help you recognise your own reasons for delay. None of them was tested by measuring a large group and checking whether the types separate. Studies that group people by their actual answers have not produced groups that match these styles. A 2024 survey of 2,076 Iranian adults by Mehdi Akbari and colleagues, for example, found just two profiles, procrastinators and non-procrastinators, which differed mainly in distress and personality.
What do all types of procrastination have in common?
Every type involves putting off something you intend to do even though you expect the delay to cost you. Research on the causes points to the same few factors whatever the type: the task feels unpleasant, you are easily drawn to something more rewarding, and you doubt you can do it well. Putting the task off brings quick relief from that feeling.
Steel’s 2007 meta-analysis of 691 correlations found task aversiveness, impulsiveness and low self-efficacy were among the strongest and most consistent predictors of procrastination. Fuschia Sirois and Timothy Pychyl describe procrastination as short-term mood repair, with the cost paid by your future self. That is why a type is less useful than a reason. The same person can delay a tax return out of dread, a decision out of fear of choosing wrong and bedtime out of a wish for time to themselves.
How to deal with each kind of delay
The table pairs common reasons for delay with approaches that address them; pick the row that matches why you are putting this task off.
| Why you are delaying | What helps |
|---|---|
| The task feels unpleasant or huge | Make the first step tiny and time-limited, such as the 5-minute rule |
| You cannot decide | Set a decision deadline and a default option |
| You wait for pressure to kick in | Set your own earlier deadline and block time for it |
| You fear the result will not be good enough | Aim for a rough first version you are allowed to throw away |
| Something more fun is always nearby | Remove the temptation before you start, not during |
| You stay up late to get time for yourself | Schedule that time earlier in the evening |
Structured help works too. A 2018 meta-analysis of 24 studies by Wendelien van Eerde and Katrin Klingsieck found that interventions reduced procrastination substantially, and that cognitive behavioural therapy reduced it more than the other approaches.
How FocusBox can help
FocusBox is a planning and focus app for the web and for iPhone and iPad. Two of its tools fit the table above.
When a task feels too big to start, the AI to-do list generator can turn a description of it into a list of smaller steps. When you need pressure without waiting for the deadline, the Procrastination Buster Timer template splits a work period into focused sessions with short breaks.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main types of procrastination?
The most cited types come from research: arousal, avoidant and decisional procrastination, and active versus passive procrastination. Popular lists add styles such as the perfectionist, worrier and crisis-maker. Studies have not confirmed most of these as separate types of people. Of Ferrari’s three, only decisional procrastination kept some potential to be distinct, and bedtime procrastination is studied as a domain, describing where the delay happens.
What are the two types of procrastination?
The two types are usually active and passive procrastination. Passive procrastinators delay because they struggle to start. Active procrastinators delay on purpose because they believe they work better under pressure. Many researchers argue that active procrastination is planned delay rather than true procrastination, and a 2019 study of 1,605 students found no achievement benefit from it.
Is being lazy the same as procrastinating?
No. Laziness means not wanting to do something at all. Procrastination means intending to do something and putting it off anyway, usually because the task feels unpleasant. Researchers describe it as short-term mood repair: putting the task off eases the bad feeling for now, and the cost lands later.
Is procrastination a sign of ADHD?
Procrastination is not one of the diagnostic symptoms of ADHD. Studies do find that ADHD symptoms, especially inattention, are linked with more procrastination. If you delay most tasks and also struggle with focus and organisation across your life, our article on ADHD and procrastination explains when an assessment is worth considering.
How do I know what type of procrastinator I am?
Look at the reason rather than a label. For the last few tasks you put off, ask what you felt just before you avoided them: dread, boredom, fear of a bad result, indecision or a pull towards something more fun. The reason tells you which fix to try, and it often differs from task to task. Online quizzes sort people into styles such as the perfectionist or the worrier, but those styles have not been validated, so treat a quiz result as a prompt for reflection.
Sources
- Ferrari. Psychometric validation of two procrastination inventories for adults: Arousal and avoidance measures (Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 1992; accessed November 2026)
- Simpson and Pychyl. In search of the arousal procrastinator: Investigating the relation between procrastination, arousal-based personality traits and beliefs about procrastination motivations (Personality and Individual Differences, 2009; accessed November 2026)
- Steel. Arousal, avoidant and decisional procrastinators: Do they exist? (Personality and Individual Differences, 2010; accessed November 2026)
- Chu and Choi. Rethinking procrastination: Positive effects of “active” procrastination behavior on attitudes and performance (Journal of Social Psychology, 2005; accessed November 2026)
- Pinxten, De Laet, Van Soom, Peeters and Langie. Purposeful delay and academic achievement: A critical review of the Active Procrastination Scale (Learning and Individual Differences, 2019; accessed November 2026)
- Kroese, De Ridder, Evers and Adriaanse. Bedtime procrastination: introducing a new area of procrastination (Frontiers in Psychology, 2014; accessed November 2026)
- Akbari, Seydavi, Zahrakar, Ferrari and Griffiths. Chronic procrastination among Iranians: Prevalence estimation, latent profile and network analyses (Psychiatric Quarterly, 2024; accessed November 2026)
- Steel. The nature of procrastination: A meta-analytic and theoretical review of quintessential self-regulatory failure (Psychological Bulletin, 2007; accessed November 2026)
- Sirois and Pychyl. Procrastination and the priority of short-term mood regulation: Consequences for future self (Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2013; accessed November 2026)
- van Eerde and Klingsieck. Overcoming procrastination? A meta-analysis of intervention studies (Educational Research Review, 2018; accessed November 2026)
- Niermann and Scheres. The relation between procrastination and symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in undergraduate students (International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 2014; accessed November 2026)
- Sapadin and Maguire. It’s About Time! The Six Styles of Procrastination and How to Overcome Them (Viking, 1996)
- Vaden. Procrastinate on Purpose (TarcherPerigee, 2015)
