Motivation and emotion/Book/2022/Time and motivation

Time and motivation:
What is the effect of time on motivation?

Multimedia presentation (3 min)

Overview

This chapter focuses on the effect of time on motivation and the strategies that can help with better time management.

Time strongly influences motivation of people in the world today as everything is moving so fast with everyone feeling the effects of time constraints. However, many people are affected by bad habits such as procrastination and task avoidance, these bad habits can leave people feeling like they have no time to complete tasks, but time management has now been brought into many settings as a way to help overcome these bad habits and reduce the effects of stress.

Time

Figure 1: The moving hands of time

What is time?

Time is the never-ending continuation of existence and events, it is indefinite and occurs in the irreversible past, through to the present, and occurring into the future (Zafarullah & Pertti, 2017). Time has been thought of as a two-factor concept; systems or clocks (Jinalee & Singh, 2018). The first concept of systems, has been regarded as the cultural rules used to arrange a set of experiences in significant ways (Jinalee & Singh, 2018) whereas the concept of time as a clock has been described as an instrument to measure moments or activities of a day (Jinalee & Singh, 2018). Time has also been further thought of as strong, transparent, and practical, comprising rules that govern our daily lives and help individuals of society achieve success (Zafarullah & Pertti, 2017).

Effect of time

Time is a constant pressure put on every individual in today’s world. Modern lives are moving at such a faster pace, due to people wanting to save time and manage time better. This is shown by people who eat whilst working, work longer hours, sleep less time, make phone calls while driving, and the development of faster modes of transport (Zafarullah & Pertti, 2017).

Time awareness

Time awareness is often triggered by looking at a clock or watch, and is more than just knowing what the time is but is when the person is aware of time or thinking of time passing (Conti, 2001). This can lead to time feeling like it is moving slowly as is said in common folklore that time passes slowly if you are constantly checking it or waiting for a certain time, whereas the opposite has been found that if you remove all temporal cues, time moves quicker than it actually does (Conti, 2001). This has been further found that people found time to pass by quicker when they did enjoyable tasks such a listen to music or socialise with friends, but found it moved slower during less enjoyable tasks such as work or study (Conti, 2001).

Motivation

What is motivation?

Motivation the cause of making someone act in a certain way to get you closer to completing your goals (Cherry, 2022). It is the process that commences, directs, and sustains goal-orientated behaviours (Cherry, 2022). Motivation is different for everyone, and can come in different kinds, these types are level and orientation (Ryan & Deci, 2000). The level of motivation is how motivated someone is towards a topic or job whereas orientation of motivation is the type of motivation someone has to a topic or job (e.g., learning a topic out of curiosity and interest or because it is compulsory to school) (Ryan & Deci, 2000). Motivation can also be broken into two types, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2000).

Intrinsic motivation

Refers to doing something because it is inherently interesting or enjoyable (Ryan & Deci, 2000; Reiss, 2012). This means that a person does the task or job not for the external rewards but for the fun of it or the challenge (Ryan & Deci, 2000).

Extrinsic motivation

Refers to doing something because it leads to a separable outcome (Ryan & Deci, 2000; Reiss, 2012). It is an important motivation just as intrinsic motivation is but the people that fit into this type of motivation do the job for the external reward, such as a promotion or award (Ryan & Deci, 2000).

Workday accumulation

Figure 2: The product of workday accumulation, sourced from www.amenclinics.com

This is a thought process that has been used to explain when people are most motivated to complete tasks in the workplace. Workday accumulation is a combination of the amount of time someone has been at work and the time of day (Benedetti et al., 2015). Another factor that contributes to workday accumulation is as the day goes on, employees are thought to have fewer resources available to them which results in them needing to exert more effort and self-control later in the day (Benedetti et al., 2015). It has been found that individuals are more energetic and less tense in the morning compared to the mid to late afternoon (Benedetti et al., 2015). Workday accumulation is also influenced by both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, in that intrinsic motivation results in higher job satisfaction earlier in the day and weaker later in the day (Benedetti et al., 2015). This is the same as extrinsic motivation as individuals are more motivated earlier in the day, but have more negative results later in the day (Benedetti et al., 2015).

Procrastination

What is procrastination?

Procrastination is when someone unnecessarily delays the completing of a task or job generally to the detriment of their health (Gafni & Geri, 2010; Shatz, 2022; Siaputra, 2010). In today’s world, procrastination is a very common occurrence as it affects approximately 20% of all adults and 50% of students (Shatz, 2022). Due to the high occurrence rate of procrastination across the world, it has been associated with a variety of health and performance issues (Shatz, 2022), including:

• Worse academic performance
• Worse financial status
• Worse emotional wellbeing
• Worse mental health
• Worse physical health
• Delay in getting help for issues

Procrastination theories

There are currently two main academic theories that take into the account of psychological causes of procrastination: emotion-regulation theory and temporal motivation theory (Shatz, 2022). Emotion-regulation theory is when procrastination occurs when individuals prioritise their short-term mood over long-term goal achievement and wellbeing (Shatz, 2022). Temporal motivation theory is when procrastination occurs when individuals’ motivation is low, which is said to be caused by a number of factors (Shatz, 2022).

Emotion-regulation theory

This theory primarily occurs when people postpone a task that they have negative feelings towards (e.g., boredom, frustration, confusion, frightened, or unpleasantness) (Shatz, 2022). It has also found to occur when the task does not elicit positive emotions (e.g., no excitement in the task), or to prolong positive emotions (e.g., when there is a more exciting alternative) (Shatz, 2022).

This theory describes a maladaptive coping strategy as it not only hinders long-term progress, but also can decrease an individual’s emotional wellbeing (Shatz, 2022). This is due to not only the individual putting off the task but the task will sit in the back of the individuals mind and worry them which can lead to further negative emotions such as shame and guilt as the individual has procrastinated doing the task (Shatz, 2022).

Temporal motivation theory

The factors said to influence this theory include high delay before achieving outcomes, low-value outcomes, and low expectations of achieving outcomes (Shatz, 2022). Under this theory, motivation is explained through an equation, sometimes called the procrastination equation (Shatz, 2022). It is explained as, motivation is equal to the value of an outcome times its expectancy, divided by the delay of the outcome times the individual’s sensitivity to delay (Shatz, 2022). These factors that make up the equation are explained as the need for achievement (value), the influence of self-efficacy (expectancy), and the influence of distractibility (sensitivity to delay) (Shatz, 2022).

How does time management effect procrastination?

Procrastination has been found to be a major cause of time pressure, which has led to the idea of time famine, which indicates a feeling of too much to do and not enough time to do it (Eerde, 2003). Procrastination has been found to be an avoidance technique when someone does not want to do something that they do not find enjoyable or has negative feelings towards (Shatz, 2022), but has also been found to be done by people even when they are under pressure to complete tasks (Eerde, 2003). Studies have been performed to test the use of time management strategies on stopping procrastination, these results have shown that people were able to better manage their time and worry less after undertaking time management training, especially in workplace settings (Eerde, 2003; Häfner et al., 2014).

Time management

What is time management

Time management is the use of goal setting, setting priorities, determining needs and planning tasks to achieve an organisational goal (Zafarullah & Pertti, 2017). By using time management effectively, individuals are able to achieve maximum productivity in a variety of settings by managing schedules, engaging in planning, and organising, and implementing the tasks completed into any setting (Zafarullah & Pertti, 2017). Time management is a learned behaviour that has a strong focus on three particular behaviours: goal setting and priorities, work prioritisation, and prepare for tests and following schedules (Jinalee & Singh, 2018).

Models of time management

Time management has been categorised into a four-stage model (Jinalee & Singh, 2018):

1. concerned with what should be done (e.g., marking tasks and activities)
2. schedules are attached to certain tasks and activities, telling you when to do them.
3. how to complete a certain task
4. all about emotions, sensations, and moods of the person. It is important in this stage to achieve a balance between understanding and accepting the strategies and priorities.

Effective time management strategies

Figure 3: Teamwork is an effective time management strategy

There are many time management strategies that can be used that can transfer between different people, such as students and workplace employees.

• Set realistic and attainable goals – this involves creating a list of goals that can be achieved within a set time limit and controlling what goals you have direct control over (Chase et al., 2013).
• Prioritise – when creating a set of goals, it is important to list them in order from highest priority to lowest, by doing this you are able to do the main goals first and keep to a timeline. This can also help in avoiding dual-tasking (Chase et al., 2013).
• Effective scheduling/planning – this involves making daily to-do lists, which can help breakdown tasks into easy parts, as well as planning tasks in advance and achieving these tasks on less demanding days (Chase et al., 2013).
• Maintain focus – this helps you stay focused on the task at hand and not drifting away to other topics that are not a part of the current task (Chase et al., 2013).
• Teamwork/delegating – this can help you stay focused by delegating tasks that are not in your task focus to others as well as given you chances to improve through peer review and support of fellow students or colleagues (Chase et al., 2013).
• Rewards – can improve work ability by rewarding yourself with little prizes for completing tasks or parts of larger projects (Chase et al., 2013).
• Distractions – creating a distraction free environment, where materials are already setup, and there are no outside disturbances can help with time management as there is no external distractions (Chase et al., 2013).
• Avoiding barriers – look to remove any barriers as they come up and discuss with others if there is something that they do that helps them with any barriers (Chase et al., 2013).
• Balance – having a good balance between sleep, rest, physical activity, relaxation, and downtime is an effective strategy as it means you do not overwork yourself (Chase et al., 2013).
• Monitoring/analysis – keeping a logbook of work done throughout the day can prove effective as it can show when you were productive as well as point out times of procrastination or ineffective work time to better prepare you for the future (Chase et al., 2013).

Time management to cope with stress

Time management has been found to be an effective strategy to help different groups of people deal with stress, whether it be students or employees (Jex & Elacqua, 1999; Macan et al., 1990; Misra & McKean, 2000). For students, time management, anxiety reduction, and leisure activities can be used to help remove the stress, as many students find the entire academic experience very stressful (Macan et al., 1990; Misra & McKean, 2000). In the workplace, time management strategies have been used to improve productivity and alleviate the stress from jobs (Misra & McKean, 2000).

Many students experience different types of stress during their studies, these stressors are categorised as academic, financial, time or health related, and self-imposed (Misra & McKean, 2000). The stressors are further compounded at the same time each semester with students reporting the greatest source of academic stress coming from studying and taking exams, grade competition, and the need to learn a large amount of content in a small amount of time (Misra & McKean, 2000). The use of time management in these situations can be beneficial as it helps students create a set of goals and prioritises the most important tasks first, as well as distributing their workloads and meeting deadlines (MacCann et al., 2012).

In the workplace, employees can benefit from time management strategies as it helps them change their behaviour to improve productivity and lessen stressful situations (Misra & McKean, 2000). The workplace strategies of time management that have been used to cope with stress are goal setting and prioritisation, mechanics of time, and preference of organisation (Jex & Elacqua, 1999). These strategies are explained as:

• Goal setting and prioritisation – involves creating a list of jobs that one wants to accomplish in a day, starting with the most important.
• Mechanics of time – involves the types of behaviours that are taught in time management training programs, such as creating to do lists and laying out work clothes the night before.
• Preference of organisation – involves having an organised and methodical approach to work, such as organising your desk before the start of the work day.

Time management strategies in students and the workplace

Figure 4: The effects of poor time management on a student

Many students struggle with time management as they are constantly pressured by internal and external forces (MacCann et al., 2012). Internal pressures that students face can include pushing themselves too hard, worrying to meet others’ expectations and worrying to meet their own expectations (MindTools, n.d.). External pressures that student’s can face are those that come from their friends, family, work, and university life (Matosic et al., 2016). Due to all of these pressures students face they can have poor time management practices, which has been found to be a major source of stress and poor academic performance (MacCann et al., 2012). The workplace has very similar time management strategies to those of a student as they say that school and university are preparing kids for the real world. This means that many of the time management strategies are the same between employees and students, with slight variations in what they need to complete in terms of assessments and jobs (Darini et al., 2011). These poor time management practices can be:

• Not properly allocating time for assignments/jobs
• Cramming for exams
• Failing to meet deadlines

By practicing time management strategies, students can improve their academic performance and create a healthy lifestyle for themselves (MacCann et al., 2012). Effective time management strategies for students include:

• Setting goals
• Meeting deadlines
• Creating to-do lists
• Constructing a timetable/schedule
• Distributing workloads
• Advanced planning

Effect of time on motivation

In work settings

Time has a strong effect on employees in the workplace as it will determine the individual’s motivation towards completing a task (Farmer & Seers, 2004). For employees that are given a task with a short deadline to complete the task of one-two days, they will be motivated to complete the task as it is due sooner compared to being given a task that the have two weeks to complete (Farmer & Seers, 2004).

In school/university settings

Figure 5: The effect of time on motivation in task completion adapted from Figure 38, Scott H. Young (2020).

Motivation plays a big role in the effect of student’s time particularly in a school setting compared to a university setting as schools and teachers are stuck to a strict curriculum meaning that if a student does not find a certain subject or topic interesting, they will be less likely to participate and learn the topic (Kauffman & Husman, 2004). This will lead to students that enjoy the topic with more time to learn the topic which will have a limited effect on their motivation towards the topic but for student’s that do not enjoy the topic or care for it, the lack of time they leave themselves to learn the topic will create a greater sense of motivation to quickly learn the topic to pass the associated test or assessment.

In everyday life

Time plays a key role in the motivation of people in shopping centres and in particular the shops in airports (Lin & Chen, 2013). This is due to the fact that when people are at shopping centres they are pressured by time restraints and therefore are motivated to just buy the first item they see of a particular product without comparing it with other brands. This has been found as a very common occurrence in airports, particularly in the international terminal as there is more luxury and travel products available for purchase (Lin & Chen, 2013). The key factors that directly affect a passengers’ behaviours towards shopping in an airport terminal are time and emotion (Lin & Chen, 2013). There are several reasons that passengers are motivated to buy products especially those that they have forgotten when in an airport terminal due to time constraints caused by the reasons below (Lin & Chen, 2013):

• Security checks
• Distance between passport control and the gates
• The non-familiar environment (can be disorientating)

Activity

Figure 6: Printable Find-a-Word Activity

This is a find-a-word activity designed to give a break and reward for people but has incorporated in words learnt throughout the wiki page.

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Below is the list of words hidden in the find-a-word.

• Balance
• Distractions
• Emotion
• Extrinsic
• Goal Setting
• Intrinsic
• Motivation
• Procrastination
• Priorities
• Schedules
• Temporal Theory
• Time Management

Conclusion

Time management strategies have been found as the most effective skills to overcome procrastination with can help lessen the effects of time on motivation as it means that people do not have to rush to complete tasks/goals as they will have plenty of time. Unfortunately, time management cannot be used in every situation such as airport terminals as sometimes the responsibility is taken out of our hands by others not utilising time properly.

See also

• Motivation (Wikipedia)
• Procrastination (Book chapter, 2011)
• Procrastination (Wikipedia)
• Procrastination benefits (Book chapter, 2017)
• Procrastination, moods, and emotions (Book chapter, 2015)
• Time management (Book chapter, 2011)
• Time management (Wikipedia)
• Time perspective and relationships (Book chapter, 2017)

References

Benedetti, A. A., Diefendorff, J. M., Gabriel, A. S., & Chandler, M. M. (2015). The effects of intrinsic and extrinsic sources of motivation on well-being depend on time of day: The moderating effects of workday accumulation. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 88, 38-46.

Chase, J. A. D., Topp, R., Smith, C. E., Cohen, M. Z., Fahrenwald, N., Zerwic, J. J., Benefield, L. E., Anderson, C. M., & Conn, V. S. (2013). Time management strategies for research productivity. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 35(2), 155-176.

Cherry, K. (2022, August 10). What is motivation? The driving force behind human actions. Very well mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-motivation-2795378#:~:text=Motivation%20is%20the%20process%20that,you%20closer%20to%20your%20goals.

Conti, R. (2001). Time flies: Investigating the connection between intrinsic motivation and the experience of time. Journal of personality, 69(1), 1-26.

Darini, M., Pazhouhesh, H., & Moshiri, F. (2011). Relationship between Employee's Innovation (Creativity) and time management. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 25, 201-213.

Eerde, W. V. (2003). Procrastination at work and time management training. The Journal of psychology, 137(5), 421-434.

Farmer, S., & Seers, A. (2004). Time enough to work: employee motivation and entrainment in the workplace. Time & Society, 13(2-3), 265-284.

Gafni, R., & Geri, N. (2010). Time management: Procrastination tendency in individual and collaborative tasks. Interdisciplinary Journal of Information, Knowledge, and Management, 5, 115.

Häfner, A., Oberst, V., & Stock, A. (2014). Avoiding procrastination through time management: An experimental intervention study. Educational Studies, 40(3), 352-360.

Jex, S. M., & Elacqua, T. C. (1999). Time management as a moderator of relations between stressors and employee strain. Work & Stress, 13(2), 182-191.

Jinalee, N., & Singh, A. K. (2018). A descriptive study of time management models and theories. International Journal of Advanced Scientific Research and Management, 3(9), 141-147.

Kauffman, D. F., & Husman, J. (2004). Effects of time perspective on student motivation: Introduction to a special issue. Educational Psychology Review, 16(1), 1-7.

MacCann, C., Fogarty, G. J., & Roberts, R. D. (2012). Strategies for success in education: Time management is more important for part-time than full-time community college students. Learning and Individual Differences, 22(5), 618-623.

Misra, R., & McKean, M. (2000). College students' academic stress and its relation to their anxiety, time management, and leisure satisfaction. American journal of Health studies, 16(1), 41.

Reiss, S. (2012). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Teaching of psychology, 39(2), 152-156.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary educational psychology, 25(1), 54-67.

Shatz, I. (2022). Procrastination theories: the psychological frameworks for explaining procrastination. Solving procrastination. https://solvingprocrastination.com/procrastination-theories/#:~:text=Temporal%20motivation%20theory%2C%20which%20states,to%20the%20delay%20of%20outcomes.

Siaputra, I. B. (2010). Temporal motivation theory: best theory (yet) to explain procrastination. Anima Indonesian Psychological Journal, 25(3), 206-214.

Zafarullah, S., & Pertti, V. (2017). Effect of time management on the job satisfaction and motivation of teacher educators: A narrative analysis.

External links

• The Complete Guide to Motivation (Scott H. Young)