Relationship between Procrastination and Anxiety among Different Age Groups

In today’s fast-paced world, increasing levels of anxiety have been linked to greater instances of procrastination, impacting individuals’ personal and professional lives. As people face growing demands and pressures, procrastination often becomes a coping mechanism to deal with anxiety and emotional discomfort. While previous research has explored the general relationship between procrastination and anxiety, limited studies have examined how this relationship varies across different stages of adulthood. The present study aims to investigate the relationship between procrastination and anxiety among young adults (18–25 years) and middle-aged adults (40–60 years). Standardized scales, namely the General Procrastination Scale (GPS) and Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI), were used to assess procrastination and anxiety levels. This study employed a cross-sectional comparative research design with a sample of 204 participants from New Delhi, NCR, India. The responses were analysed using Descriptive statistics, Independent T test, Pearson’s Correlation and moderation analysis through JAMOVI statistical software. Results revealed that young adults exhibited significantly higher levels of both procrastination and anxiety compared to middle-aged adults. A statistically significant positive correlation was found between procrastination and anxiety overall (r = .159, p = .023), with this relationship holding only for young adults (r = .164, p = .050) and not for middle-aged adults (r = –.062, p = .536). Moderation analysis indicated that age did not significantly moderate the relationship between the two variables. These findings underscore the importance of age-specific interventions to address procrastination and anxiety effectively.