Procrastination is a bad habit that plagues college students and results in all-nighters and caffeine overdoses.

Piers Steel of the University of Calgary conducted a 10-year study that was published by the American Psychological Association on procrastination, which he completed 5 years later than planned due to his own procrastination.

Three-fourths of college students consider themselves procrastinators, according to an American Psychological Association study on the affliction. The APA found procrastination burdens men worse than women and young men more than older men.

“People who procrastinate tend to be less healthy, less wealthy and less happy,” Piers said. “(It’s) harder to wean chronic procrastinators from the habit of delaying than to wean alcoholics from booze.”

The procrastination “sickness” is spreading, he said. In 1978, only 5 percent of Americans thought of themselves as procrastinators, and today it has risen to 26 percent. This is due, Piers said, to the number of distractions that now eat up our time: Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, video games, smart phones and other technological gadgets.

With all these distractions, procrastination is “effortless.” Tyler Marovich, junior political science major, said society expects college students to procrastinate.

“I wouldn’t be a good college student if I didn’t [procrastinate],” Marovich said. “A more productive one, perhaps, but that would take away from the (college) experience.”

Sophomore pre-marketing major Justin Marinchick said he tries to do other things in place of his school work.

“I usually try to do anything else — mostly clean and do the dishes,” Marinchick said.

He suggests when going to the library, leave your phone at home and disable websites like Facebook and Youtube.

Contact Maggie Thurston at [email protected].