Motivation

Motivation

Motivation

Motivationis apsychologicalfeature that induces an organism to act towards a desiredgoaland elicits, controls, and sustains certain goal-directed behaviors.

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It can be considered a driving force; a psychological one that compels or reinforces an action toward a desired goal. For example,hungeris a motivation that elicits a desire to eat. Motivation is the purpose or psychological cause of an action. Motivation has been shown to have roots in physiological, behavioral, cognitive, and social areas. Motivation may be rooted in a basic impulse to optimize well-being, minimize physical pain and maximize pleasure.It can also originate from specific physical needs such as eating, sleeping or resting, and sex.Motivation is an inner drive to behave or act in a certain manner. "It's the difference between waking up before dawn to pound the pavement and lazing around the house all day.These inner conditions such as wishes, desires and goals, activate to move in a particular direction in behavior.

Theories Related to Motivation

Motivational Theories

A class of theories about why people do things seeks to reduce the number of factors down to one and explain all behavior through that one factor. For example, economics ,uses self-interest as a mono-motivational theory.

Conscious and Unconscious Motivations

A number of motivational theories emphasize the distinction between conscious and unconscious motivations. In evolutionary psychology , the "ultimate", unconscious motivation may be a cold evolutionary calculation, the conscious motivation could be more benign or even positive emotions. For example, while it may be in the best interest of a male's genes to have multiple partners and thus break up with or divorce one before moving onto the next, the conscious rationalization could be, "I loved her at the time".Freud is associated with the idea that human beings have many unconscious motivations that cause them to make important decisions because of these unconscious forces, such as choosing a partner.

Non-Psychological TheoriesPlatonic theory of motivationInThe Republic, Platoadvances a tri-partite theory of the soul, which consists of three parts: reason, spirit and appetite. All parts of the soul have desires, however not all desires are the same. Desires take many different forms and have many different responses or results.Machiavellianism Machiavellianismargues that human beings are motivated to seek power and status above all. Modern research argues that people who are high in this trait do indeed seek power and money, and are willing to use others as instruments towards that end

Psychological Theories and Models

Rational motivations. The idea that human beings are rational and human behavior is guided by reason.

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation Motivation can be divided into two types: 1. intrinsic (internal) motivation 2. extrinsic (external) motivation.

Intrinsic Motivation

Intrinsic motivation - refers to motivation that is driven by an interest or enjoyment in the task itself, and exists within the individual rather than relying on external pressures or a desire for reward.

The phenomenon of intrinsic motivation was first acknowledged within experimental studies of animal behavior. In these studies, it was evident that the organisms would engage in playful and curiosity driven behaviors in the absence of reward. Intrinsic motivation is a natural motivational tendency and is a critical element in cognitive, social, and physical development.Students who are intrinsically motivated are more likely to engage in the task willingly as well as work to improve their skills, which will increase their capabilities.

Students are likely to be intrinsically motivated if they:attribute their educational results to factors under their own control, also known as autonomybelieve they have the skills to be effective agents in reaching their desired goals, also known as self-efficacy beliefsare interested in mastering a topic, not just in achieving good grades

Extrinsic Motivation

Extrinsic motivation refers to the performance of an activity in order to attain an outcome, whether or not that activity is also intrinsically motivated. Extrinsic motivation comes from outside of the individual. Common extrinsic motivations are rewards (for example money or grades) for showing the desired behavior, and the threat of punishment following misbehavior. Competition is in an extrinsic motivator because it encourages the performer to win and to beat others, not simply to enjoy the intrinsic rewards of the activity. A cheering crowd and the desire to win a trophy are also extrinsic incentives

Comparison of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

Social psychological research has indicated that extrinsic rewards can lead to over justificationand a subsequent reduction in intrinsic motivation. In one study demonstrating this effect, children who expected to be (and were) rewarded with a ribbon and a gold star for drawing pictures spent less time playing with the drawing materials in subsequent observations than children who were assigned to an unexpected reward condition.[While the provision of extrinsic rewardsmight reduce the desirability of an activity, the use of extrinsic constraints, such as the threat of punishment, against performing an activity has actually been found to increase one's intrinsic interest in that activity.

In one study, when children were given mild threats against playing with an unattractive toy, it was found that the threat actually served to increase the child's interest in the toy, which was previously undesirable to the child in the absence of threat.For those children who received no extrinsic reward, self-determination theoryproposes that extrinsic motivation can be internalized by the individual if the task fits with their values and beliefs and therefore helps to fulfill their basic psychological needs.

By contrast, the role of extrinsic rewards and stimuli can be seen in the example of training animals by giving them treats when they perform a trick correctly. The treat motivates the animals to perform the trick consistently, even later when the treat is removed from the process.

Operant Conditioning

Operant conditioning, a term coined by B.F. Skinner, is a method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishments for behaviour. Skinner believed that internal thoughts and motivations could not be used to explain behaviour; instead to look at external, observable causes of human behaviour. His theory explained how we acquire the range of learned behaviors we exhibit each and every day.

Push and PullThis model is usually used when discussing motivation within the context of tourism. Push factors determine the desire to go on holiday, whereas pull factors determine the choice of destination. Push motives are connected with internal forces, for example the need for relaxation orescapism, while pull factors are the external factors, such as landscape, cultural image or the climate of a destination, that induce a traveler to visit a certain location.

Push factors can be stimulated by external and situational aspects of motivation in the shape of pull factors. Then again pull factors are issues that can arise from a location itself and therefore push an individual to choose to experience it.Since then, a large number of theories have been developed over the years in many studies there is no single theory that illustrates all motivational aspects of travelling. Researchers have highlighted that because several motives may occur at the same time it should not be assumed that only one motive drives an individual to perform an action, as was presumed in previous studies. On the other hand, since people are not able to satisfy all their needs at once, they usually seek to satisfy some or a few of them.

This model is usually used when discussing motivation within the context of tourism. Push factors determine the desire to go on holiday, whereas pull factors determine the choice of destination.Push motives are connected with internal forces, for example the need for relaxation orescapism, while pull factors are the external factors, such as landscape, cultural image or the climate of a destination, that induce a traveler to visit a certain location.Since then, a large number of theories have been developed over the years in many studies there is no single theory that illustrates all motivational aspects of travelling. Many researchers have highlighted that because several motives may occur at the same time it should not be assumed that only one motive drives an individual to perform an action, as was presumed in previous studies.

Self-controlThe self-control aspect of motivation is increasingly considered to be a subset ofemotional intelligence; It is suggested that although a person may be classed as highly intelligent (as measured by many traditionalintelligence tests), they may remain unmotivated to pursue intellectual endeavours.Vroom's "expectancy theory" provides an account of when people may decide to exert self-control in pursuit of a particular goal

Drives

A drive or desire can be described asa deficiency or need that activates behavior that is aimed at a goal or an incentive.These drives are thought to originate within the individual and may not require external stimuli to encourage the behavior. Basic drives could be sparked by deficiencies such as hunger, which motivates a person to seek food whereas more subtle drives might be the desire for praise and approval, which motivates a person to behave in a manner pleasing to others.Another basic drive is the sexual drive which like food motivates us because it is essential to our survival.The desire for sex is wired deep into the brain of all human beings as glands secrete hormones that travel through the blood to the brain and stimulates the onset of sexual desire.

The hormone involved in the initial onset of sexual desire is called dihydroepiandosterone (DHEA).The hormonal basis of both men and women's sex drives is testosterone.Men naturally have more testosterone than women do and so are more likely than woman to think about sex, have sexual fantasies, seek sex and sexual variety (whether positions or partners), masturbate, want sex at an early point in a relationship, sacrifice other things for sex, have permissive attitudes for sex, and complain about low sex drive in their partners.

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Incentive TheoryAreward, tangible or intangible, is presented after the occurrence of an action (i.e. behavior) with the intention of causing the behavior to occur again. This is done byassociatingpositive meaning to the behavior. Studies show that if the person receives the reward immediately, the effect is greater, and decreases as delay lengthens. Repetitive action-reward combination can cause the action to becomehabit. Motivation comes from two sources: oneself, and other people. These two sources are called intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation, respectively.

Reinforcersandreinforcementprinciples of behavior differ from the hypothetical construct of reward. A reinforcer is any stimulus change following a response that increases the future frequency or magnitude of that response, therefore the cognitive approach is certainly the way forward as in 1973 Maslow described it as being the golden pine apple.Positive reinforcement is demonstrated by an increase in the future frequency or magnitude of a response due to in the past being followed contingently by a reinforcing stimulus. Negative reinforcement involves stimulus change consisting of the removal of an aversive stimulus following a response.

Positive reinforcement involves a stimulus change consisting of the presentation or magnification of a positive stimulus following a response. From this perspective, motivation is mediated by environmental events, and the concept of distinguishing between intrinsic and extrinsic forces is irrelevantApplying proper motivational techniques can be much harder than it seems. Steven Kerr notes that when creating a reward system, it can be easy to reward A, while hoping for B, and in the process, reap harmful effects that can jeopardize your goals.

Incentive theory in psychology treats motivation andbehaviorof the individual as they are influenced bybeliefs, such as engaging in activities that are expected to be profitable. Incentive theory is promoted bybehavioral psychologists, such asB.F. Skinnerand literalized by behaviorists, especially by Skinner in hisphilosophyofRadical behaviorism, to mean that a person's actions always havesocialramifications: if actions are positively received people are more likely to act in this manner, or if negatively received people are less likely to act in this manner.

Incentive theory distinguishes itself from other motivation theories, such asdrive theory, in the direction of the motivation. In incentive theory,stimuli"attract", to use the term above, a person towards them, as opposed to the body seeking to reestablishhomeostasisand pushing towards the stimulus. In terms of behaviorism,incentive theoryinvolvespositive reinforcement: the reinforcing stimulus has been conditioned to make the person happier.

For instance, a person knows that eatingfood, drinkingwater, or gainingsocial capitalwill make them happier. As opposed to indrive theory, which involvesnegative reinforcement: a stimulus has been associated with the removal of thepunishmentthe lack ofhomeostasisin the body. For example, a person has come to know that if they eat when hungry, it will eliminate that negative feeling ofhunger, or if they drink when thirsty, it will eliminate that negative feeling of thirst.

Escape-seeking Dichotomy ModelEscapism and seeking are major factors influencingdecision making. Escapism is a need to breakaway from a daily life routine, turning on the television and watching an adventure film, whereas Seeking is described as the desire to learn, turning on the television to watch a documentary. Both motivations have some interpersonal and personal facets for example individuals would like to escape from family problems (personal) or from problems with work colleagues (interpersonal). This model can also be easily adapted with regard to different studies

Drive-reduction theory has some intuitive or folk validity. For instance when preparing food, the drive model appears to be compatible with sensations of rising hunger as the food is prepared, and, after the food has been consumed, a decrease in subjective hunger. There are several problems, however, that leave the validity of drive reduction open for debate.

The first problem is that it does not explain how secondary reinforcers reduce drive. For example, money satisfies no biological or psychological needs, but a pay check appears to reduce drive throughsecond-order conditioning. Secondly, a drive, such as hunger, is viewed as having a "desire" to eat, making the drive ahomuncularbeinga feature criticized as simply moving the fundamental problem behind this "small man" and his desires.

Cognitive Dissonance TheorySuggested byLeon Festinger,cognitive dissonanceoccurs when an individual experiences some degree of discomfort resulting from an inconsistency between two cognitions: their views on the world around them, and their own personal feelings and actions.For example, a consumer may seek to reassure themselves regarding a purchase, feeling in retrospect that another decision may have been preferable. Their feeling that another purchase would have been preferable is inconsistent with their action of purchasing the item. The difference between their feelings and beliefs causes dissonance, so they seek to reassure themselves.

While not a theory of motivation, per se, the theory of cognitive dissonance proposes that people have amotivational driveto reduce dissonance. Thecognitive miserperspective makes people want to justify things in a simple way in order to reduce the effort they put into cognition. They do this by changing their attitudes, beliefs, or actions, rather than facing the inconsistencies, because dissonance is a mental strain. Dissonance is also reduced by justifying, blaming, and denying. It is one of the most influential and extensively studied theories insocial psychology

The Hierarchy of Human Needs: Maslows Model of Motivation

Beginnings: Psychology without a soul

Throughout the first half of the 20th century, the dominant theories in psychology had beenthe:Psychoanalysis ofSigmund Freudand theBehaviourism ofJ. B. WatsonandB. F. Skinner.Both had tended to portray human beings as faulty machines.

Drive reduction theory cannot be a complete theory of behavior, or a hungry human could not prepare a meal without eating the food before he finished cooking it. The ability of drive theory to cope with all kinds of behavior, from not satisfying a drive (by adding on other traits such as restraint), or adding additional drives for "tasty" food, which combine with drives for food in order to explain cooking render it hard to testIn Freuds view, human beings were almost entirely driven by primitive urges like sex and aggression. These ever-present impulses must be managed if we are to live together in civilized society. This leaves many people hopelessly conflicted at an unconscious level. A miserable, unfulfilled existence is unavoidable.In the behaviourists view, human beingsare like oversized lab rats programmed orconditionedto behave the way they do by factors outside of their control. They have no mind, no will of their own. Their feelings are not real and therefore do not matter. People are simply programmable machines who can be manipulated into doing anything.

Need TheoriesMotivation, as defined by Pritchard and Ashwood, is the process used to allocate energy to maximize the satisfaction of needs.In their different ways, psychoanalysis and behaviourism had dehumanized our understanding of ourselves and what it means to be human. In the middle of the century which had brought us Nazism, Communism, mechanized warfare, systematic genocide and Mutually Assured Destruction, psychology was unintentionally providing a scientific justification for such horrors.These rather bleak, soul-less visions of human nature constituted the first two waves of psychology as a science.

Brooklyn-born American psychologistAbraham Maslow(1908-1970) was dismayed by these attempts to reduce human psychology to mindless mechanisms.He wanted to know what constitutedpositive mental health andhappiness, not just mental illness and misery.Maslow was thus inspired to start a whole new movement in psychology a third wave which he calledhumanistic psychology.This was a real departure from the two dominant theories of the time in that it acknowledged a human or existential urge to grow, to seek happiness and fulfilment, to live up to our potential.Without actually rejecting the insights of earlier psychologists, Maslow proposed that human beings are driven by different factors at different times. These driving forces are hierarchial, in the sense that we generally start at the bottom layer and work our way up.

A Pyramid Primer

The Hierarchy of Needs is a model in which Maslow attempted to capture these different levels of human motivation. It represents the idea that human beings are propelled into action by different motivating factors at different times biological drives, psychological needs, higher goals.Now the hierarchial arrangement is not meant to imply that those who focus on higher needs are somehowbetter than those who focus on lower needs. Its not that kind of hierarchy. Its a hierarchy withinyou, within your day-to-day experience.

It simply means that higher needs dont appear unless and until unsatisfied lower needs are satisfied. If you are suffering from cold and hunger, for example, you just dont have the time or energy to worry about your self-esteem. Your entire being is focused on food and warmth.For this reason, the different levels also broadly correspond to different stages of life. The basic physical needs at the bottom are predominant in infancy; safety needs come into focus in early childhood; belonging needs predominate in later childhood; esteem needs predominate in early adulthood and self-actualization only really comes into focus with mature adulthood.

The first level, at the bottom of the pyramid, consists of our short-termbasic needs, also known asphysiological needs: food, water, warmth, sex.The second level consists of longer-termsafety needs: security, order, stability.The third level represents the social need foraffiliation, also known as love and belonging. We want to be accepted by others around us. We want to have stable relationships.

The fourth level represents the need foresteem. Within our social groups we want to be recognized and admired as individuals who accomplish things. We want prestige and power.Almost at the top of the pyramid,self-actualizationisthe desire to experience ever deeper fulfilment by realizing (actualizing) more and more of our human potential.At the very top of the pyramid is the desire forself-transcendence to experience, unite with and serve that which is beyond the individual self: the unity of all being.Self-Actualization and Self-TranscendenceThe two lowest levels of the pyramid are important to the physical survival of the organism.Then, once we have our basic physical and safety needs sorted, we feel more ready to share ourselves with others and accomplish things in the world. Most people can readily identify with these common levels of motivation.

Maslow held that as we come to feel satisfied with our accomplishments and sense of social worth, we take another step.He referred to this urge asself-actualization. It is very similar to the processCarl Jungreferred to asindividualization, which tends to kick in during mature adulthood.Self-actualization is different from all the previous needs. We dont feel spurred into action by a sense ofdeficiency(Must find food Must make friends). Rather, we feel inspired togrow, to explore our potential and become more of what we feel we can be. Maslow called self-actualization a growth need while all the rest are deficiency needs.

For Maslow, the level of self-actualization reflects the fact that human beings are not simply biological machines. As we mature and become more aware of ourselves, we are increasingly driven by a sense of personal meaning and purpose.Many people are under the impression that the hierarchy of needs stops there. Not so.For while studying people who operate at the level of self-actualization, Maslow noticed that many of them frequently have, and deliberately seek, some other kind of experience. Something extraordinary.Maslow termed thesepeak experiences. They are profound, life-altering moments of love, understanding, happiness, bliss. They are moments in which one feels radically more whole, more completely alive, more aware of truth, beauty, goodness, and so on.

Self-actualizing people have many such peak experiences and eventually feel inspired to actively seek them, extend them and stabilize them. Hence, Maslow added the goal ofself-transcendenceas the final level, the capstone of the pyramid.The desire is to go beyond our ordinary human level of consciousness and experience oneness with the greater whole, the higher truth, whatever that may be.The earliest and most widespread version of Maslows hierarchy (based on Maslows earlier work) shows only the first ve levels. A more accurate version of the hierarchy, taking into account Maslows later work and his private journal entries, shows six motivational levels, with self-transcendence at the top (Koltko-Rivera, 2006).

Reporter: FEDERICO BEGAS BARRERA

FEDERICOF - FromE - everyD dreamE emerges aR - realityI induced byC - consistentO optimism

BEGASB By going

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S self satisfaction

BARRERAB - BigA - accomplishmentsR - requireR - relentlessE enthusiasm andR - resilientA - attitude

Meaning:A dream does come true if I wake up and work hard for its realization.

This is my self-motivation.

Professor:Prof. Joseph Febhos Magsipoc

JOSEPHJ - JestsO - occasionally withS sense of humor,E easing awayP perplexity ofH his students

FEBHOSF Fatherly figure toE - everyB boy or girl,H handing themO ounces ofS sensible advices

MAGSIPOCM Magnetic, A accommodatingG gallant,S success-oriented, &I - inspiringP - professorO - ofC - CAPSU

Thank youfrom the bottomof my hypothalamus!