Communications in Humanities Research ISSN: 2753-7072
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Research Article

Problematic Short-Video Use and Academic Procrastination: The Potential Role of Subjective Time Distance

Zihao Xie*
Zhuhai College of Science and Technology

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

Short videos are a familiar part of students' daily lives, but some students find it difficult to stop watching when academic work is waiting. Problematic use concerns this loss of control and interference with other activities, rather than viewing time alone. Direct evidence concerning academic procrastination is limited. The most direct study reviewed reports a weak positive association between problematic short-video use and academic procrastination, but its cross-sectional design leaves the direction unclear. Difficulties with attentional control and the appeal of short-term mood relief offer possible explanations for why students turn away from academic work. This review also considers subjective time distance: how near or far away an academic deadline feels from the present. Research on construal level provides a reason to examine this experience alongside attention and mood, although no study reviewed here directly tests its role in the relationship between short-video use and academic procrastination. Clarifying these distinctions may help future studies separate difficulties in stopping viewing from the decision to postpone an intended academic task.

Keywords: Problematic short-video use; academic procrastination; subjective time distance; attentional control; emotion regulation
Published: October 20, 2026
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2026.BJ38053
Volume: CHR Vol.126
pp. 15-20
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