What is Motivation?

Motivation is the act or process of giving

someone a reason to do something.
Motivation energizes behavior and directs
it toward a goal. It is what either starts
or stops behavior. It is the internal and
external forces that drive our thoughts,
moods, and behaviors.
What motivates you to go to college?
 Theories of (Approaches to) Motivation

Different schools of thought look at

motivation ( that power that either starts
or stops behavior ) through different
lenses.
Instinct theory
Drive theory
Arousal theory
Incentive theory
Cognitive theory
Instinct Theory: Born to be Motivated
Instincts: Inborn patterns of behavior that
are biologically determined rather than
learned.
Instinct theory proposes that organisms are
motivated to engage in certain behaviors
because of their genetic programming and
because these behaviors lead to success in
terms of natural selection.
For example, we pursue sex in order to
reproduce to propagate the human species.
It is an innate biological need.
Drive Theory
Drive: Motivational tension, or arousal, that
energizes behavior to fulfill a need.
Drive theory aka Drive Reduction or Homeostatic
theory. This perspective views behavior as
motivated by the need to reduce internal tension
caused by unmet biological needs (e.g., hunger,
thirst, sex, sleep– the biological drives).
This unmet need “drives” us to behave in a way
that causes the intensity of the drive to be
reduced.
They work by “negative” feedback, that is one
experiences an unpleasant feeling (hunger, thirst)
until you meet the need.
Drive Theory (Cont.)
Homeostasis: The body’s tendency to
maintain a steady internal state (body
temperature, fluid levels, energy
supplies, nutrient levels).
This is our natural state. The body does
its best to stay balanced (hunger, thirst,
sex drive, sleep)
When deviations from the ideal state
occur, the body adjusts in an effort to
return to an optimal state.
Drive Theory (Cont.)
Drive theory cannot fully explain a curiosity
and thrill-seeking behaviors.
Example of behavior motivated by curiosity--
rushing to check e-mail messages.
Example of thrill–seeking activities-- riding a
roller coaster or steering a raft down the
rapids of a river.

Riding rollers coasters A team of white water rafters steer

their boat through white water rapids,
on the River Tay, Scotland, UK
Arousal Theory
It is the arousal theory that can explain a
curiosity and thrill-seeking behaviors.

Arousal theory suggests that if our

stimulation and activity levels become too
high, we try to reduce them, and that if
levels of stimulation and activity are too
low, we will try to increase them by
seeking stimulation.

See examples on the previous slide.

Incentive Theory
This theory suggests that behavior is
motivated by the desire to obtain
valued external goals, or incentives or
rewards (e.g., grades, money, affection,
food)
You come to class to get a grade of ‘A’
You work out to get compliments
You go to work to earn money to buy a
house
Incentive Theory (Contd.)
Not all of human behavior has a direct
reward attached to it. For example, how
about those who are motivated to achieve
just for the sake of achieving or who do
things for fun or personal growth.
What are some of the things we do for fun
that don’t have any incentive attached to
them?
 Cognitive Theory
This theory suggests that motivation is a
product of people’s thoughts,
expectations, and goals—their cognitions.
For instance, the degree to which people
are motivated to study for a test is based
on their expectation of how well studying
will pay off in terms of a good grade.
Cognitive Theory (Contd.)
Cognitive theorists distinguish between two types
of motivations.
Extrinsic Motivation: A type of motivation in
which a person performs an action because it
leads to an outcome that is separate from or
external to the person. Example: Going to work
for money.
Intrinsic Motivation: A type of motivation in
which a person performs an action because the
act itself is rewarding or satisfying in some
internal manner. Example: Creating a web site
for fun.
Applying the Different Approaches to
Motivation
Module 30
Human Needs and
Motivation
Learning Objectives
 What is a Motive?

 Types of Motives
 Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of
Needs
What is a Motive?
Motive is normally used to mean the
specific reason for performing a
specific action
It is an incentive, a particular goal
or objective.
Example: They ran away to avoid
being punished (motive = to avoid
being punished).
Types of Motives
Motives can be divided into three
major categories
Primary Motives
Secondary Motives
Stimulus Motives
Types of Motives (Contd.)
Primary Motives are based on
biological needs that must be met for
survival. They are innate like hunger,
thirst, sex, pain avoidance, needs for
air, sleep, elimination of wastes, and
regulation of body temperature.
Types of Motives (Contd.)
Secondary motives: motivated to do
something for fame, power, affiliation,
approval, status, security, and
achievement.
based on learned needs, drives, and
goals.
Helps explain many human activities
like making music, creating a web page,
trying to win a skateboarding contest or
American Idol.
Types of Motives (Contd.)
Stimulus motives: express our needs for
stimulation and information. For example,
activity, curiosity, exploration, throwing
parties, surf the net (navigate through the
Internet), reading, hanging out with
friends, emailing each other, learning
computers or dancing for fun.
Imagine what your life would be like if you
felt no arousal? No stress? BORING!
The Need for Achievement: Striving for
Success
Need for Achievement
A habitual desire to achieve goals
through ones efforts. The desire to
excel or meet some internalized
standard of excellence
People want to do well in any situation
The Need for Affiliation: Striving for
Friendship
Need for Affiliation
An interest in establishing and maintaining
relationships with other people.
People who have higher affiliation needs are
particularly sensitive to relationships with
others.
They desire to be with their friends more of
the time and alone less often.
Female students spend significantly more
time with their friends and less time alone
than male students do.
The Need for Power: Striving for
Impact on Others
Need for Power
A tendency to seek impact, control, or
influence over others and to be seen as a
powerful individual.
Men with high power needs tend to show
high levels of aggression, drink heavily, act
in a sexually exploitative manner, and
participate more frequently in competitive
sports.
Women display their power needs with more
restraint; this is congruent with traditional
societal constraints on women’s behavior.
Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
People strive for a positive view of
the self to realize their own
potentials fully.

These needs were innate but

without a supportive, nurturing
environment, this essential striving
for full potential could not take
place.
Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Sequence of needs
Basic needs must be met before
moving on to tackle the higher ones.
For example, if you don’t have
enough to eat, or scared you may
lose your house, you probably won’t
strive as much for personal
accomplishment.
 Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
A pyramid can represent the model with the more basic
needs at the bottom and the higher-level needs at the top.
Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
 Self-actualization
 Motivation to develop to our fullest potential
 A state of self-fulfillment in which people
realize their highest potential in their own
unique way.
 We all strive to become “self actualized” that
is reaching and using our full potential in our
vocational and personal life.
 Maslow suggested that self-actualization
occurred in only a few famous individuals
Module 31
Understanding Emotional
Experiences

 Learning Objectives
 What is Emotion?

 The Functions of Emotions

 Classifying Emotions
 The Roots of Emotions
What is Emotion?

Emotion is defined as a state

characterized by conscious experience,
physiological arousal, subjective feeling,
and behavioral expression.
What is Emotion (Contd.)?

Conscious Experience– Experiencing

an external object or something within
oneself with conscious awareness.
What is Emotion (Contd.)?
Physiological arousal
Autonomic Nervous System
Sympathetic Nervous System → arouses

Parasympathetic Nervous System →

calms
An example of physiological changes (or
arousal) are a pounding heart (palpitations
triggered by stress), sweating palms,
“butterflies in the stomach” (anxious and
nervous feelings), and other bodily reactions.
What is Emotion (Contd.)?
Behavioral Expression– verbal or nonverbal
Nonverbal Expression– includes changes
in facial expression, posture, gestures, etc.
 FacialExpressions– happiness, anger,
sadness, surprise, disgust, fear
Facial expressions not only reflect emotional

experience but also help determine how

people experience and label emotions (a
hypothesis known as facial-feedback
hypothesis).
Identifying Facial Expressions
The Functions of Emotions
Prepare us for action
Shape our future behavior (by
influencing the way we think)
Help us interact more effectively
with others.
Primary/Basic Emotions
These photos demonstrate six of the
primary emotions:
happiness,
anger,
sadness,
surprise,
disgust, and
fear
 Classifying Emotions
(according to valence)
Emotio
ns

Positiv Negativ
e e

Sadnes
Love Joy Anger s
Fear
 Classifying Emotions
(according to valence)
The Roots of Emotions: Theories of
Emotions

The James-Lange Theory

The Cannon-Bard Theory

The Schachter-Singer Theory

Theories of Emotions (Contd.)

James-Lange Theory
Perception of external stimulus
 Physiological
arousal
Physiological arousal  Emotion
Perception of physiological (or visceral
bodily) changes
We feel sad because we cry, afraid
because we tremble” (James, 1890).
Theories of Emotions (Contd.)
Cannon-Bard Theory
Emotional and physiological reactions
occur simultaneously by the same nerve
stimulus
After we perceive an emotion-producing
stimulus, the thalamus is the initial site of
the emotional response.
Next, the thalamus sends a signal to the
autonomic nervous system, thereby
producing a visceral response.
Theories of Emotions (Contd.)
Cannon-Bard Theory
At the same time, the thalamus also
communicates a message to the cerebral
cortex regarding the nature of the
emotion being experienced.
We now understand that the
hypothalamus and the limbic system, not
the thalamus, play a major role in
emotional experience.
Theories of Emotion (Contd.)
Theories of Emotions (Contd.)
Schachter-Singer (Two-Factor) Theory
The belief that emotions are determined
jointly by a nonspecific kind of physiological
arousal and its interpretation, based on
environmental cues.
Physiological arousal
Cognitive labeling
Arousal  Interpret external cues  Label emotion
Theories of Emotion (Contd.)
Schachter-Singer (Two-Factor) Theory
Theories of Emotion (Contd.)
Chapter Summary
Questions?