This article will cover the following points:

• What is revenge bedtime procrastination?
• Why do we engage in revenge bedtime procrastination?
• How can you reduce revenge bedtime procrastination?

What is revenge bedtime procrastination?

Imagine that you had a really busy day and came home feeling tired. You would consider going to sleep right? Wrong! Most people check social media at least once before going to sleep, and delay their sleep to enjoy some freedom they were unable to find throughout the day. This is described as a type of self-regulation failure: the person voluntarily does not go to bed without having any outer source keeping them from sleeping [1,4,5,6]. The reason behind it does not have to be related to procrastination, but it is usually linked to personal discomfort. For example, people who are involved with bedtime procrastination will expect to wake up tired, irritable and guilty because they delayed their sleep [7]. 

You may ask yourself, what is self-regulation anyway? 

Self regulation is a skill: being able to work according to your goals. People change the way they think, how they feel and their actions to be in line with their goals. Thus, these efforts are named as self-regulation[3]. For example, if you do most of the actions that you intend to do in a day then you are good at self-regulation. When people are inconsistent with what they want to do and what they achieve, it could be due to procrastination. This could be manifested in distinct ways (read our article on procrastination), and one of them is revenge bedtime procrastination! Essentially, even though you want to sleep and wake up energised, you fail to self-regulate to this goal because of some contradicting internal goals, such as need for gratification or thinking you deserve this time “off” [3]. 

One of the main researchers in this area suggests that people who are bad at self-regulating are more likely to get distracted or give into temptations present in the environment. Moreover, they are less likely to act according to their long-term goals: people may give in to watch the next episode of that show on Netflix or scroll for “just 5 more minutes” and end up regretting these decisions when they wake up [5]. 

Why is this relevant to know?

Well, bedtime procrastination studies show that this may be why, in general, young adults report going to bed later than they intend to. Additionally, people who engage in bedtime procrastination may be more likely to experience higher levels of depression, anxiety and use social media more than people who do not procrastinate their bedtime [2]. 

Why do we engage in revenge bedtime procrastination?

A study investigated the explanations behind bedtime procrastination and found three main categories: deliberate procrastination, mindless procrastination, and strategic delay[7]. 

• Deliberate procrastination - This type of behavior occurs when the person intentionally and knowingly does not go to bed and expects to wake up with insufficient sleep. Some of the people said that they enjoyed having some time only for themselves. Others thought that this was well deserved. 
• Mindless procrastination - This type of procrastination happens because the person is unaware of how fast the time passes due to their inattention or distraction because of the activity they are doing. For example, some people reported that they were too busy watching TV, working on an arts & craft and were not aware of time passing by! 
• Strategic delay - The last type identified is about people believing that delaying their bedtime makes sense because they would not be able to sleep at a given time. Some people reasoned that they had too much energy at the moment, whereas others stated that they strategically used this time to battle against insomnia (i.e., it becomes easier to fall asleep when they build up sleep pressure). 

Another study examined the reasoning behind bedtime procrastination from a different standpoint [1]:

• The strength model of self-control - This model proposes that self-control is a limited resource, and when people use it mindlessly it can result in ego-depletion. This state leads to the person avoiding their goals and failing at self-control, until the latter is refurbished. 
• Implicit theories about availability of self-control resources - From this point of view, it is posited that people can have different ideas about how much self-control resources they possess. For some people willpower is a limited resource that runs out when they do activities that are linked with self-control. After it runs out, you can do activities like taking a break, sleeping or eating to restore it back: this is the limited theory. However, some people believe that their willpower does not have any limits and it should be activated via physical or mental effort: this is the non-limited theory. 
• The authors discovered that when students are stressed, those who believe that their willpower is not limited were more likely to sleep earlier and engage in bedtime procrastination less. However, it’s important to mention that, usually students in this sample missed their ideal sleep time by 45 minutes because of self-control failures [1]. 

How can you reduce Revenge Bedtime Procrastination?

• Time management - In one of the articles, it is advised that people learn how to properly manage their time where they can have a “me time” without having to end up with insufficient amounts of sleep [7]. 
• Start getting ready for bed earlier - If you want to sleep at 11pm, have a routine for yourself around 10:30 or 10 pm. For example: wash your face, get water, journal or read for a bit, relax by closing your eyes and then fall asleep. 
• Be consistent - Try to have a sleep schedule where you wake up at the same time and also go to bed around the same time. This will help your body to adjust its biological clock.  
• Check social media before - Instead of looking at your phone right before you sleep, look at it 1-2 hours before the desired sleep time. If you cannot stop scrolling, use your phone’s function of limiting social media usage. This will stop you, when you are unable to regulate yourself. 
• Avoid caffeinated drinks/alcohol before bed!

Want to learn more about bedtime procrastination? Check out these links:

1. Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvxSoLV9LLw&ab_channel=TalesofMereExistence
2. Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwLIQ_oC7Lo&ab_channel=ThomasFrank
3. Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-q4XQpZPvkA&ab_channel=AndrewKirby 
4. Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/episode/77IeWzNHge6ZoZeajeApow?si=K1hUaXy2QouujGasTMO5Ag 

References

1. Bernecker, K., & Job, V. (2020). Too exhausted to go to bed: Implicit theories about willpower and stress predict bedtime procrastination. British Journal of Psychology, 111(1), 126-147.
2. Chung, S. J., An, H., & Suh, S. (2020). What do people do before going to bed? A study of bedtime procrastination using time use surveys. Sleep, 43(4), zsz267.
3. Kadzikowska-Wrzosek, R. (2018). Self-regulation and bedtime procrastination: The role of self-regulation skills and chronotype. Personality and Individual Differences, 128, 10-15.
4. Kroese, F. M., De Ridder, D. T., Evers, C., & Adriaanse, M. A. (2014). Bedtime procrastination: introducing a new area of procrastination. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 611.
5. Kroese, F. M., Evers, C., Adriaanse, M. A., & de Ridder, D. T. (2016). Bedtime procrastination: A self-regulation perspective on sleep insufficiency in the general population. Journal of health psychology, 21(5), 853-862.
6. Kühnel, J., Syrek, C. J., & Dreher, A. (2018). Why don’t you go to bed on time? A daily diary study on the relationships between chronotype, self-control resources and the phenomenon of bedtime procrastination. Frontiers in psychology, 9, 77.
7. Nauts, S., Kamphorst, B. A., Stut, W., De Ridder, D. T., & Anderson, J. H. (2019). The explanations people give for going to bed late: A qualitative study of the varieties of bedtime procrastination. Behavioral sleep medicine, 17(6), 753-762.