Tom Shulich ("ColtishHum")

Literature Review and Synthesis of Research on Time Management

Psychologists have conducted research into the effectiveness of various time management techniques for organizing work and personal life. Time management is also a popular topic for self-help books, PowerPoint presentations, and instructional web videos (for example, Allen, 2001; Mann, 2007; McGhee, 2005; Spidal, 2009). The untested assertions found in some of the practical manuals provide testable hypotheses that psychologists can investigate empirically using controlled samples and statistical models. These researchers have found some of the popularly promoted time-management advice to be supported by the research, and other recommendations to be of questionable value.

In this essay, I will compare, contrast and synthesize information presented in the three publications on time management: Bruce K. Britton and Abraham Tesser (1991), Therese Hoff Macan (1994), and Debra Spidal (2009). Each of these authors approaches the problem from different angles. Together their...
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