Academic Procrastination as a Mediator Between Competitiveness and Self-Efficacy Among University Students

The study examines the mediating role of academic procrastination between academic competitiveness and self-efficacy among postgraduate students in Kashmir. Grounded in Bandura's self-efficacy theory, the study adopts a descriptive research design with a sample of 300 postgraduate students drawn from multiple disciplines. Data were collected using standardized measures of academic competitiveness, procrastination, and self-efficacy. The findings indicate that academic procrastination significantly mediates the relationship between competitiveness and self-efficacy, with higher competitiveness predicting increased procrastination and reduced self-efficacy. Gender and discipline-based differences were also observed. The study extends existing motivational theories by contextualizing academic behavior within a conflict-affected setting.