5b - motivations

Question 1

motivation

Answer 1

Chamorro-Premuzic (2013): An internal state that:
Drives people into action
Energizes, directs, and perpetuates behaviour
Is directed towards the satisfaction of needs/drives
If unsatisfied, will generate a state of physiological or psychological arousal (or both).
Is dynamic rather than static.

Question 2

Models of Motivation

Answer 2

Murray: needs and press (situational conditions/events) -> motive -> behaviour

primary needs: bio in nature
secondary/psychogenic needs: derive from biology and/or psychological

Chamorro-Premuzic (2013):
More recent models include goals
especially to distinguish motivation from mood.

Question 3

Secondary/Psychogenic Needs + 3 secondary needs

Answer 3

Murray (1938):
20 Psychogenic Needs (plus 7 provisional needs) proposed on basis of extensive data collection (interviews, observations, childhood memories etc.)

Scheffer & Heckhausen (2018)
Most research now focuses on three secondary Needs: Need for Achievement; Need for Affiliation; Need for Power.

Question 4

McClelland’s Acquired Needs Theory (1950s) + how its measured

Answer 4

Need for achievement: desire to master skills, do things well, and accomplish goals
need for affiliation: desire to form relationships and spend time w others
Need for power: desire to influence and control others

Measured with Thematic Apperception Test (TAT).
Projective tests considered appropriate for motivation research due to implicit nature of motives e.g. Schultheiss (2008).

Question 5

Potential Sub components of power and achievement

Answer 5

hope and fear components of motives
Need for achievement: Hope for success Vs fear of failure
Need for power: hope of power vs fear of weakness

Question 6

Hill: subtypes of need for affiliation

Answer 6

• need for emotional support
• need for attention from others
• need for social comparrison
• need for positive stimulation

Question 7

Need for Achievement - task preference

Answer 7

Schultheiss (2008):
Preference for tasks of moderate difficulty, that indicate ability.
Preference for work settings with frequent feedback on current vs previous performance.

Question 8

Schultheiss (2008): Correlates of high Need for Achievement:
inidividual and social levle

Answer 8

Individual level:
Entrepreneurial success and innovation
Poor leadership and managerial skills

societal/historic level:
Economic growth and innovation
Civil war and ineffective leadership

Question 9

Need for Achievement and Economic Growth

Answer 9

Bradburn and Berlew (1961)
Estimated societal level of ‘need for achievement’ using content analysis of popular literature.
‘Projection’ of author’s values, needs and motives.
Scored extracts for ‘achievement imagery
Estimated economic activity through coal imports

found: chnages in need for achievement followed 50 years later by similar changes in coal imports

Question 10

what is need for Power

Answer 10

Schultheiss (2008):
Can reflect desire to influence and have impact, not necessarily just dominate and control
Can also be expressed through generativity e.g.
Winter (1973): Individuals high in Need for Power more attracted by jobs involving teaching
Peterson and Stuart (1996): High Need for Power (in females) correlated with larger families, and greater involvement in parenting.

Question 11

Schultheiss (2008): Correlates of high Need for Power
individual and societal

Answer 11

Individual-level
*Higher testosterone levels
*Higher sexual activity and aggression
*Managerial, leadership and career success

Societal/Historic-level
*Increase in war and arms
*Effective leadership

Question 12

Need for Power and Effective Leadership study

Answer 12

Spangler and House (1991): used existing data assessing for: power, affiliation and achievement
coded inaugural speeches of presidents
Presidential Performance’ indicators measured by e.g. war entry; war avoidance; perceived ‘greatness’; great decisions cited
Indicators of ‘Presidential Performance’ predicted by high Need for Power (and lower Needs for Achievement and Affiliation).

Question 13

Need for Affiliation - correlates individual/societal

Answer 13

Individual-level
*Like similar others, but dislike dissimilar others

Societal/Historic-level
*Peace and disarmament
*Political scandal

Question 14

Langer and Winter (2001): concessions

Answer 14

Importance of concessions to avoid/resolve conflicts.
Undergraduates responded to letter relating to Cuban Missile Crisis.
Letters coded for concessions and Needs.
Need for Affiliation positively related to concessions.
Need for Power negatively related to concessions.

Question 15

Physiology of Need for Power

Answer 15

high testosterone - high need for power –> engage in power challenge situations –> activation of sympathetic NS

repeated activation leads to high blood pressure, lowered immune system function, increases susceptibility to illness

Question 16

Physiology of Need for Power - prison study

Answer 16

McClelland, Alexander & Marks (1982):
133 male prison inmates - Thematic Apperception Test (4 brief stories).
Coded for Need for Power and Need for Affiliation
Number of stressors experienced + illnesses in past 12 months
Saliva sample to measure salivary immunoglobulin-A (SIG-A) as an indicator of immune functioning

Results: highest illness in high need for power and high stress response with lower SIG-A (worse immune functioning)

Question 17

Health Effects of Need for Power

Answer 17

McClelland (1989): It is the ‘Stressed power motive’ that is associated with poorer health.
Schultheiss (2008, pp 616): High need for power per se is “not a general vulnerability for impaired health.”

Question 18

Need for Affiliation - and Health schultheiss

Answer 18

Schultheiss:
Associated with parasympathetic activity, and increased immune functioning.
Generally positive effects on health.

Question 19

Need for Affiliation and Health - film study method

Answer 19

132 student participants.
Needs measured using TAT before and after watching one of two short films.
Mother teresa and WW2 doc
Need for affiliation group primed further in post-film writing task about love and caring.
Levels of S-IgA measured before and after the film.
Also measured illness experienced that year.

Question 20

film study results

Answer 20

Evidence for protective effects of need for affiliation.
No overall effect of change in need for power.
But, sub-group with ‘inhibited power motive syndrome’ (high in need for power; low in need for affiliation; high in inhibition) did show reduction in SIG-A after WWII film.
No link between reactive increase in SIG-A and illness history.