Chapter 8 - Textbook

Question 1

Motivation is a theoretical concept referring to

Answer 1

our beliefs, values, and interests

Question 2

Motives are hypothetical constructs used to explain

Answer 2

why people are doing what they are doing

Question 3

Motives are distinguished from related constructs such as goals (DEFINE) and strategies

Answer 3

goals = (the immediate objectives of particular sequences of behaviour)
strategies = (the methods used to achieve goals and thus to satisfy motives)
- Although, all three (motives, goals, and strategies) contribute uniquely to understanding the driving forces behind our actions

Question 4

Early behavioural views depicted humans as responsive to “primary drives”

Answer 4

such as hunger and thirst

Question 5

when do primary and secondary drives form?

Answer 5

• The common assumption was that primary drives are present at birth, whereas “secondary drives” begin to form through early child experience
• That is secondary drives are learned through experience and socialization rather than being innate or present at birth

Question 5

give an example of how secondary drives are learned

Answer 5

For instance, if a parent is always present during nursing, due to the repeated association between food and social contact, a child learns that interactions with other people (particularly caregivers) can be highly rewarding
- Recall that behaviourist theories rely less on explaining behaviour through drives or needs and instead focus on reinforcement as the primary mechanism for establishing and maintaining behaviour

Question 6

Motivational theories shifted away from explaining our actions through a _ lens.

Answer 6

behaviourist

Question 7

what is the most famous theory on human motivation?

Answer 7

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Question 8

Although psychology students worldwide widely study the HON, it has been open to criticism. Here are a few points to keep in mind:

Answer 8

[1] developmental changes may cause the hierarchy of needs to shift depending on an individual’s stage of life
[2] the theory might be too simplistic to explain all aspects of human behaviour
[3] the hierarchy may vary across cultures, particularly between collectivist and individualistic societies
[4] it might have inherent biases due to its development from a Western perspective, which may limit its generalizability to all human behaviour

Question 9

Another branch of motivational psychology focuses on goal setting as a crucial component of

Answer 9

human motivation

Question 10

The motivational psychology field of research focuses on one major question:

Answer 10

why, given all of the options available to us, do we pursue one goal or path while ignoring others?

Question 11

According to Goal Theories, human motivation combines several goals involving different psychological and social needs. Name the 9 different types of goals

Answer 11

• affective
• cognitive
• subjective organizational
• self-assertive goals
• integrative social relationship goals
• task goals
• learning goals
• performance goals
• work-avoidant goals

Question 12

describe affective goals

Answer 12

include our emotional and physical satisfaction
- for example, we might attend a meditation class for stress relief and tranquillity, go to a concert for entertainment and joy, or indulge in a spa-related activity for pleasurable bodily sensations and enhanced well-being

Question 13

describe cognitive goals

Answer 13

relate to intellectual curiosity. Consider reading a book for intellectual fulfillment or spending hours completing a complex puzzle because it engages our minds

Question 14

describe subjective organization goals

Answer 14

include a strong focus on spiritual awareness
- Rather than participating in a meditation class for stress relief, as in the case of affective goals, one might desire a sense of heightened spiritual awareness through the experience

Question 15

A person may pursue self-assertive goals by

Answer 15

taking on a leadership role at work or competing in a sporting event in their community to feel a sense of achievement

Question 16

Integrative social relationship goals relate to

Answer 16

our ethical and social obligations. We may volunteer at a community centre or advocate for issues of social, gender, and indigenous inequalities

Question 17

Task goals help us learn and continue practicing skills, such as

Answer 17

playing a musical instrument or focusing on efficient time management strategies, to better manage our academic, personal, and professional responsibilities

Question 18

Within the context of student learning, adopting different types of goals may have a great impact on how they

Answer 18

approach their learning and thus their overall educational experience

Question 19

describe learning goals

Answer 19

Learning goals help us focus more on understanding and mastering the academic content

Question 20

describe performance goals

Answer 20

While performance goals might shift our focus more on the final outcome, such as earning a high mark, as to why we might take one course over another

Question 21

describe work-avoidant goals

Answer 21

Lastly, when students adopt work-avoidant goals, they minimize facing challenges by focusing more on reducing the time and effort they devote to the task itself

Question 22

To encourage students to practice learning goal focused on mastering the material rather than work-avoidant goals, classroom applications of goal theories recommend two major strategies. name the first

Answer 22

The creation of a classroom environment that nudges students in the direction of learning goals
- For example, focusing on emphasizing that students should feel safe to make mistakes and by highlighting that errors happen while we learn and that our focus should be on the adoption of a mastery goal mindset

Question 23

To encourage students to practice learning goal focused on mastering the material rather than work-avoidant goals, classroom applications of goal theories recommend two major strategies. name the first

Answer 23

Teachers can reduce competition among students by avoiding practices such as posting scores so that all students are aware of each other’s performance on an assignment or on a test
- Yes, this was standard practice once upon a time! This reduces the pursuit of performance goals or work-avoidant goals in students

Question 24

Researchers who study worker satisfaction and job characteristics have pointed to three critical factors of work

Answer 24

—skill variety, task identity, and task significance—also applicable to student satisfaction

Question 25

Just as workers prefer jobs that offer diverse activities and opportunities to use various skills, students may also prefer varied learning experiences that allow them to engage in different skills. give examples of this

Answer 25

• creating assignments where students can take pride in creating something from start to end in the form of a final product, in similar ways to workers who enjoy jobs that result in tangible evidence of their efforts, may make the experience of learning more enjoyable (task identity)
• Student motivation can also increase when students perceive their work as meaningful (task significance)

Question 26

The Growth Mindset theory, proposed by American psychologist Dr. Carol Dweck, suggests that

Answer 26

people with a growth mindset embrace challenges, face setbacks with a positive attitude, and learn from criticism

Question 26

In one study where researchers interviewed eighth-grade teachers about their approaches to teaching U.S. history, the most frequently mentioned technique was having:

Other effective methods included

Answer 26

students role-play characters in historical simulations
- Other effective methods included organizing projects that result in a final product, playing games, and relating past historical events to current events or our everyday life events
*These strategies reflect diverse methods teachers may adopt to make history education more engaging for their students

Question 27

A fixed mindset make us think that

Answer 27

our abilities are unchangeable, leading us to shy away from difficult experiences.

Question 28

Students with a growth mindset show what qualities?

Answer 28

• higher levels of resilience, psychological well-being, and academic performance than those with a fixed mindset
• Adopting a growth mindset is also associated with increased school engagement, self-efficacy, and reduced academic burnout among students

Question 29

who came up with the intrinsic motivation theory of flow?

Answer 29

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
- - The concept of flow was first introduced by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, who identified it as a critical component of optimal experience and peak performance

Question 30

define flow

Answer 30

• being so engaged in an activity to the point that you lost track of time
• Another way to think about flow is to consider what one might experience when “in the zone,” wholly absorbed in what one is doing and experiencing a sense of effortless concentration and enjoyment

Question 31

when does flow happen?

Answer 31

Flow can happen when the challenges of a task match the individual’s skills—neither too easy nor too difficult
- During flow, people often feel a sense of control, clarity, and intrinsic motivation. Flow allows the activity to become its own reward
- Flow can occur in various contexts, such as sports, the arts, work, or even during everyday activities like cooking or writing, and dare I say, studying!

Question 32

what is the opposite of the state of flow?

Answer 32

the experience of psychological stress

Question 33

Stress is a complex _ response

Answer 33

Stress is a complex behavioural, psychological, and physiological response that has received much media attention in recent years

Question 34

Although we might think that the best type of life is the one that eliminates all types of worries from daily life, one might be surprised to learn that some amount of stress may serve as a

Answer 34

motivator
- Of course, knowing our limits is important
- If there are overwhelming amounts of psychological stressors, then our ability to function in everyday activities could be drastically impacted
- However, some stress can target our attention and motivate us to act.

Question 35

our evolutionary past helped our ancestors benefit from stress’s effects. How does stress help?

Answer 35

For example, during an immediate stress response, the body responds by releasing adrenaline to allow for increased energy
- What is essential is to keep in mind HOW we perceive the stress experience

Question 36

Pioneering researchers in stress have introduced the concept of psychological thriving, where

Answer 36

a stressor can lead to greater self-confidence and even enhanced health
- During and after a stressful experience, one might be more likely to focus on positive physical, social, and psychological health behaviours

Question 37

The Yerkes-Dodson Law model, initially studied by Yerkes and Dodson (1908) at Harvard University, evaluated how

Answer 37

• mice learned to discriminate between a black or white box in connection to varying electric shocks when they made the wrong choice
• The duo studied habit formation in the mice by measuring the relationship between the strength of electric shocks (mild, moderate, severe) and how quickly the animals learned to respond correctly
• Not surprisingly, the higher the severity of the shock, the quicker the animal learned.

Question 38

In the 1950s, psychologists made the leap from animal studies to human performance with the recommendation that perhaps human performance functions in a similar fashion. The model resulted in a

Answer 38

hypothetical mathematical inverted U-shaped function with task performance on the y-axis and stress level on the x-axis
- Since the 1950s, there has been an ongoing question about whether human motivation and arousal truly mirror the suggested inverted U-shaped pattern. This question remains unanswered in 2024.

Question 39

is academic success a strong predictor of career excellence?

Answer 39

no
- The subjective experience of reporting high stress might be a common feature of university life, mainly due to the pressure of high grades, which can significantly impact mental well-being and academic performance
- It might reassure you that a student’s GPA is, in fact, a poor predictor of professional success later in life.
- While grades have some value, please remember that they are just ONE of the many factors that contribute to our long-term success