Procrastination dataset_155 design students and staff from a UK school of design and creative arts

The nature of designing as well as the professional characteristics of many designers leave them vulnerable to the delay of tasks and decisions also known as procrastination. Procrastination is not discussed in design literature. Procrastination is defined as the voluntary delay or inability to complete a task or make a decision. It is often linked to the individual being overwhelmed. The dataset submitted was from a questionnaire that asked about the frequency and form of procrastination; and, influences on their behaviour when trying to undertake stages of a design process was completed by 155 design students and staff within a UK design and creative arts school. The stages included: literature review, ideation, prototyping, and report writing. The outcomes suggested chronic procrastination related to all stages of a design process, with a frequency of more than once a week. Additional questions highlighted multiple tasks were likely to overwhelm the respondents, whilst distractions such as new projects were likely to result in completing alternative tasks. An additional open question provided qualifying comments suggesting procrastination wasn’t explicitly addressed in academic design training. Two key activities to reduce the effects of procrastination were suggested: 1) prioritise tasks; and 2) reduce complexity of each task. Additional advice included: development of professional self-confidence, realistic goal planning, minimising external stimulus, controlling workflows, working in study groups, developing virtuous routines at optimal times during the day, the management of reward and consequence; and use of technology to optimise self-regulation.