Urgent tasks are concrete, important tasks are abstract: A construal level theory perspective

Abstract

In daily life, individuals often face the challenge of allocating time between urgent and important tasks. Despite longstanding recommendations from time management researchers to prioritize important tasks, individuals frequently gravitate toward addressing urgent matters. To examine the trade-offs between urgency and importance, the present research applies construal level theory to investigate the differing construal levels associated with urgency and importance. Across four studies, we demonstrate that urgency is subordinate to importance (Study 1, N = 140) and that important tasks are construed more abstractly than urgent tasks (Study 2, N = 135). Furthermore, Study 3 (N = 255) and Study 4 (N = 140) revealed that individuals with higher construal levels allocate more time to important tasks and preferentially prioritize important but non-urgent tasks over urgent but less important ones. These findings underscore the higher construal associated with task importance compared to urgency, providing valuable insights into enhancing time management through interventions targeting individuals' construal levels.