Sleep procrastination is still an emerging concept in sleep science. As a result, there are ongoing debates about the psychology behind this voluntary sleep reduction.

People who engage in bedtime procrastination know and generally want to receive enough sleep, but they fail to actually do so. This is known as an intention-behavior gap.

One explanation for this gap is a failure in self-regulation or self-control. Our capacity for self-control is already at its lowest

at the end of the day, which may facilitate sleep procrastination. Some people may be naturally inclined to procrastination in general, including around bedtime. In addition, daytime demands at work or school may reduce the reserves of self-control available in the evening.

Not everyone agrees with this explanation, with some arguing that it places too much emphasis on self-control

. Instead, sleep procrastination may result from people who have an evening chronotype — “night owls” — who are forced to try to adapt to schedules designed for “early birds.” In revenge bedtime procrastination, sacrificing sleep for leisure time may also be seen not as a failure of self-control but rather an attempt to find recovery time in response to stress.

Sources - https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-hygiene/revenge-bedtime-procrastination