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MichaelAnissimov comments on Fighting Akrasia: Finding the Source - Less Wrong
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My guess is that akrasia could be more effectively fought if this community called it was it is -- laziness -- instead of using a fancy Greek name.
Everywhere I see the term “akrasia” used, people mean procrastination or laziness. Indeed, it makes no sense to just add a fancy Greek name to signal sophistication or belonging to rationality tribe. But akrasia can succinctly denote a whole cluster of things “you do against your better judgement”: procrastination, depression, anxiety, jealously, envy, alcoholism, tobacco smoking, drug addiction, compulsive lying, sex addiction, insecurities, self-harm, self-hatred, bitter hatred for something, constant arguing, seeking external validation, etc.
Things, that people do, realise on reflection are harmful or wasteful, but can't control themselves and do it anyway, again and again. Any destructive feeling or behaviour that people want to control but can't, fits the definition of akrasia. CBT claims that many of these are related, have the same origin and can be treated similarly. It's nice to have an umbrella term.
Procrastination and laziness may be kinds of akrasia, but simply because that are the type most talked about here does not mean that they are an exhaustive description of "weaknesses of will". One example I find easy to bring up is trying to move while we are in pain. There are definite moments where a crisis of will occurs, and if you have a sharp shooting pain in your leg while walking you will either change your movement against your intended direction or overcome that moment and escape the akrasia for a time.
I do, however, suspect that this community would do a better job at fighting akrasia if we did not confound it solely with procrastination and "laziness".
In what way is "I want not to bother doing it" the same as "I have spent huge amounts of money, effort, emotion, social favors and time trying and failing to do it"? The latter is typical in akrasia. Funny way to be lazy, if you ask me.
One may keep oneself occupied with unimportant but important-seeming work (checking emails twice an hour, gold-plating etc.) instead of concentrating on implementing one's best judgment. I don't think that laziness is a good word to describe this condition.
Or "procastination".
Saying "akrasia" is signaling.
Good point.
Esp. for the kind of things you can solve with to-do lists and the like, procrastination is a better name. The only reason to use the term akrasia) seems to be that a web-search will give better-quality results...
I personally consider the distinction this way: procrastination is avoiding something, whereas akrasia is doing something other than what you intend. The distinction is useful, in that there are some differences in how to approach fixing them.
It sounds like the distinction you're making is between whether you do or don't intend to not do what you think you should be doing. Is that correct?
The intention distinction has to do with why I'm doing what I'm doing instead of what I "should".
If I'm procrastinating on X, then I'll do anything but X (to avoid it), even if it's otherwise of low value or not very pleasant. The intent is "not do X".
However, If I'm experiencing akrasia, then I might do Y or Z, because I want to do them more. The intention is, "I want to do Y or Z, but it can wait".
Aren't that simple.