Medical

International Journal of Medical and Pharmaceutical Research

2027, Volume 8 Issue-1

A cross-sectional study regarding correlation between procrastination and perceived stress among medical students in Badaun, Uttar Pradesh

Abstract Background: Procrastination, the act of delaying or postponing tasks, is a common challenge faced by individuals, particularly in high-pressure environments like medical education. Medical education presents demanding and potentially daunting requirements for students globally, which has become a significant concern of stress. This study aimed to explore the relationship between procrastination and perceived stress among medical students in Uttar Pradesh, India. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Government medical college in Uttar Pradesh. The sample comprised 225 MBBS students aged 18 years and above. The Assessments included the Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (PASS), The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Data were entered in Excel and analyzed using SPSS 23 with descriptive statistics, Chi-square and Spearman’s Correlation for comparisons. Results: The findings revealed that 90(40%) of the participants exhibited high levels of procrastination, with 80(35.56%) at a moderate level and 55(24.44%) showing low procrastination. Moderate perceived stress was prevalent among 170(75.56%) of students. A statistically significant positive correlation (ρ = 0.18) was observed between procrastination and perceived stress, indicating that students with higher procrastination scores reported increased levels of stress. Conclusion: This study highlights the detrimental impact of procrastination on the perceived stress levels of medical students, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions to manage procrastination and reduce stress in academic settings. Addressing these issues is crucial for improving not only academic performance but also the overall well-being of medical students. Future research should aim to establish causality and include broader demographic samples to further understand this relationship. Keywords Procrastination Perceived Stress Medical Students Gender Differences. INTRODUCTION Procrastination is commonly conceptualized as an irrational tendency to delay required tasks or assignments despite the negative effects of this postponement on individuals and organisations1. Poets have even written figuratively about procrastination, with such phrases as “Procrastination is the Thief of Time,”2. The current culture in medical schools often demands that medical students be faultless and flawless. Characteristics, such as impeccable performance, high competency in the medical field, and awareness of detail, are generally expected of medical students and physicians. Therefore, medical students may set too perfect standards for academic tasks and it may be difficult to complete tasks that meet high standards, which puts pressure on themselves. Academic procrastination tends to occur frequently when the absolute amount of academic tasks increases, and the task becomes more complex and stressful3,4.Research has shown that over 70% of university students experience procrastination in relation to their academic tasks and approximately 58% of undergraduate students report procrastinating for three hours or more in a day. Higher frequencies of sadness (46.59%) and procrastination (47.12%) have been observed in medical students5,6. Perceived stress is not about measuring the frequency of stressful events rather it is about how an individual feels about the general stressfulness of his life and the ability to handle such stress7. Medical education has been reported throughout the world as one of the most stressful academic curricula, which negatively affects the physical and mental health of medical students. Fear of examinations, high parental expectations, peer pressure, lack of leisure time, financial problems, relationship disharmony, and aspirations of higher studies are some of the many factors known to contribute to the development of stress in undergraduate medical students8,9.A minor level of stress is beneficial and enables the student to become a more dynamic and better performer. Conversely, persistently high levels of stress may cause considerable psychological and physical glitches like poor academic performance, stress-related anxiety, depression, drug use, and even suicide10,11. The present study investigated Procrastination and the perceived stress level as well as reasons and sources of stress among medical students. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted among the students of a government Medical College in Uttar Pradesh. The study was conducted over a three-month study period from June 2023- March 2024. The sample comprised 225 MBBS students from the 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 batches. MBBS students aged 18 years and above were asked to participate in the study and explained about the study’s purpose, voluntary nature of participation, confidentiality of responses, and their right to withdraw at any time without consequences. Students who were willing to participate, with written informed consent obtained prior to participation and those who understood the study’s purpose were included in the study. Students who were absent during data collection, unable to participate due to illness, did not provide consent, or missed any assignment or weekly test were excluded from the study. Measures Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (PASS) Procrastination assessment scale-students (PASS) is extensively used to measure academic procrastination among students (Solomon and Rothblum, 1984). Procrastination Assessment Scale- students (PASS) has two parts, first part has six academic tasks: writing a term paper, studying for exams, and weekly assignments, performing administrative tasks, taking part in meetings and performing academic tasks in general. In six tasks, the participants have to accomplish three rating scales which indicate the frequency with which they procrastinate on that task (1 = Never procrastinate, 5 = Always procrastinate) whether their procrastination on the task is a problem (1 = Not at all a problem, 5 = Always a problem) and in case of to decrease their procrastination on the task (1 = Do not want to decrease 5 = Definitely want to decrease) (Solomon and Rothblum, 1984). The sum of PASS items delivers an overall academic procrastination measure with total scores ranging from 12-60. Higher scores demonstrate a higher level of academic procrastination. The second part of the PASS asks respondents to think about when last time they felt procrastination during writing a term paper and have to identify the reason for procrastination. Self-reported procrastination comprises both frequent delay and stress and it takes time to accomplish a task in this situation. Previous studies describe that higher procrastinators lessen delay only when a person’s stress reaches a peak (Solomon et al., 1983)13. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) is the most widely used psychological instrument for measuring the perception of stress. It is a measure of the degree to which situations in one’s life are appraised as stressful. The questions in the PSS ask about feelings and thoughts during the last month. In each case, respondents are asked how often they felt a certain way. Scoring: PSS scores are obtained by reversing responses (e.g., 0 = 4, 1 = 3, 2 = 2, 3 = 1 & 4 = 0) to the four positively stated items (items 4, 5, 7, & 8) and then summing across all scale items. A short 4 item scale can be made from questions 2, 4, 5 and 10 of the PSS 10 item scale14. Data Analysis-The collected data was analysed through a quantitative technique using SPSS®23. Chi square test was used to compare the differences in procrastination, PASS and PSS between high and low-procrastination students. Spearman’s Correlationwas conducted to examine the correlation between procrastination and stress. Differences were considered statistically significant if the p-value was less than 0.05. RESULTS The study included a total sample of 225 medical students, comprising 133 males and 92 females. The participants were categorized based on their procrastination levels (low, moderate, and high) and perceived stress levels (low, moderate, and high). Gender differences in procrastination and stress were analyzed to determine any significant associations.