Strategies to overcome "academic-apathy" in the final stages of the PhD?

Here is what kept me motivated and got me through the last year of my PhD:

1. A comment from a professor that the best dissertation is the one that is written.
2. My advisor kept pushing me to get her chapters. I'm not sure where you stand with your advisor, but if he/she (and your committee as a whole) wants you to finish up, that can be motivating. If you want to push this angle, send out an email to your advisor and committee with your plan to finish -- that will help keep you working!
3. I had set a deadline for myself (as mentioned in point 2), and backed all my planning up to make sure I met the deadline. It sounds like you've gotten to the point where it is just the writing you have left, and I suggest setting up a schedule of when you will complete each chapter.
4. My deadline revolved around the job market -- I knew I needed to be ready to start at a job in August, so I knew I needed to be completely done by then.
5. I took breaks when I needed to. I treated myself to a day off when I got a chapter completed and sent to my advisor, and I had one weekly TV program that I watched religiously. Finishing a PhD is a lot of work, but it doesn't need to be soul-crushing (and soul-crushing work is bad for you, anyway!).
6. I really wanted to see the finished product -- I thought it was cool to have this giant, polished document, and that kept me tinkering on it.

Good luck!

My suggestion would be to set minor distinct goals for each day but not overdo them, make them manageable. Mix boring chores with more fun ones so that the fun ones become a reward. This may seem a bit vague or even wooly. The problem I think you are experiencing is that while working on a PhD you get accustomed to stress and like many (myself included) a certain stress is needed to get something, and really the best, out of oneself. This phenomena, in my case, has only gotten worse, and I simply have a hard time getting anything done unless there is some pressure that gets stress levels up. But, with certain tasks it is possible to get stuff done by breaking it down into smaller pieces because if there is no overview or goals are too nebulous then it is not easy to focus on what to do in detail.

Looks like a clear burnout sign. Instead of watching movies and cleaning. Get on a train and do something totally different. I think you are in this loophole and won't be getting out of it by doing the same stuff over and over (remember Einstein's quote). Normally you'll need just 3 days to reset your motivation. Things you can do:

• visit new places
• see new faces
• talk about anything else but your PhD
• rearrange your furniture (believe me, it helps. Your brain needs to forget old patterns)
• don't read, watch movies or focus on anything more than 15 minutes
• go shopping. Ladies do this all the time to get that confidence kick

Good luck.