Exam 1 Flashcards
What is motivation?
Motivations are driven by internal motives which give behavior its energy, direction, persistence
Three Internal Motives
Needs, Cognition, Emotions
Needs
Conditions in the individual that are essential and necessary for life
e.g) hunger, thirst, competence, relatedness, autonomy, etc
Cognitions
Mental events capable of energizing and directing behavior
e.g) goals, plans, mindsets, etc
Emotions
Short-lived, feeling arousal-purposive-expressive phenomena that help us adapt to the opportunities and challenges we face during life
What affects motives and behaviors?
Energy, Direction, Persistance
Energy
Behavior has strength, it can vary in its initiation, intensity, and persisitance
Direction
Behavior and purpose and aiming to achieve a certain outcome
Persistence
Behavior has endurance, it sustains itself over time and across situations
Why study motivation and emotion?
Theoretical gains: provides an explanation and understanding
How do we study motivations and emotions?
Behavioral science which requires: Objective, data-based, empirical evidence gained from
well-conducted peer-reviewed research findings
Why do we study emotions with motivation?
Emotions are one type of motive: They energize and direct behavior just like needs and cognitions do
Emotions express the person’s ever-changing motivational states and
personal adaptation status
What motivates us to do things?
As humans, we have instincts to fulfill needs which results in better mental and physical well-being.
Intrinsic motivation
An inherent desire to engage in one’s interests and to exercise and develop one’s capacities
Extrinsic Motivation
An environmentally created reason (e.g., incentives, rewards or punishments) to engage in an activity or action
External regulation of motivation
Incentives, Rewards, Consequences
Incentives
Incentives are provided by the environment and learned
ex) promising a child a cookie to complete reciting multiplication tables task
Theory of Behaviorism
Theory of Learning that state that organisms act to receive rewards and avoid punishments (behaviors are acquired through conditioning)
When are rewards harmful?
Rewards have negative effects mainly when they are clearly contingent on doing another activity, when they are expected, and when they are tangible (such as money, prizes or grades).
Behaviorism in psychology
Grades are a form of extrinsic
motivation: they reward accomplishment
The empty-vessel model (behaviorism)
Children do not come into the classroom with
beliefs, ideas, and knowledge and rather need
teacher to pour knowledge into their brains
What to do when students arrive at different levels?
- Decenter grading: focus on learning objectives for the course
- Emphasize the entire portfolio
- Students develop an individualized plan
- Encourage self-evaluation
- Portfolio conference
When is extrinsic motivation beneficial?
When there is a set, algorithmic solution to a problem (low-interest/difficulty tasks)
When there is no long-term goals
When is extrinsic motivation beneficial?
When rewards can make an uninteresting task worth pursuing
ex) increasing participation in recycling
Cognitive Evaluation Theory
Cognitive evaluation theory provides a way for predicting the effects that any extrinsic event will have on motivation.
How do we nurture inner motivational resources?
Support the other’s interest, enjoyment,
psychological need satisfaction
Internalization
A process where which a person transforms a formerly externally prescribed way of thinking into an internally-endorsed one
Relatedness
We know that the other cares for and loves us
Purpose
When there is greater meaning behind the action
Competence
When we believe that the recommended beliefs and behaviors will allow us to function more effectively in life
Autonomy
When we understand how these beliefs and behaviors will help us accomplish the goals and strivings that are central to our interests
Do punishers work?
A punisher is any environmental stimulus that, when presented, decreases the future probability of the undesired behavior
Bandura’s Social Learning Theory
Learning occurs through observations and interactions with others
Reinforcement
Any event that follows the behavior and
results in a strengthening or decreasing of that behavior
Amotivation
Lack of autonomy, lack of competence, lack of purpose
What is a core motive?
A core motive must be motivating, beneficial, universal
Failure to self-regulate physiological needs
- Underestimating biological urges
- People have inconsistent and conflicting standards
- Failing to monitor when they become anxious and preoccupied
Assumptions of Bandura’s Theory Reciprocal Causation
- People are inherently active—always in
active exchange with their environment - People need supportive, rather than
hostile, environments.
Self-Determination Theory
Suggest that all humans have three basic psychological needs… autonomy, competence, relatedness
Autonomy
The need to experience self-direction and personal endorsement in the initiation and regulation of one’s
behavior
Subjective qualities of autonomy
Internal Perceived Locus of Causality: That the individual is the causal source of his or her motivated actions.
Volition: A heartfelt and unpressured willingness to engage in an activity.
Perceived Choice over One’s Actions: A subjective experience that one may decide to act or not to act.
How do people respond to a lack of control?
When people feel as if their freedom is being taken away, they often reassert their autonomy by doing exactly the opposite of what they were requested to do
Reactance Theory
An unpleasant motivational reaction to offers, persons, rules, or regulations that threaten or eliminate specific behavioral freedoms.
Three effects of helplessness
Motivational deficits, Learning deficits, Emotional deficits
Neural circuitry of goal setting
When active in a particular sequence gives rise to a particular behavior
Four brain areas with neural circuitry
*Amygdala: fear/anxiety/avoidance
* Ventral Striatum/basal ganglia: initiating and preventing action
* Cortex
* Lateral prefrontal cortex: planning, thinking about things in different time scales
* Orbitofrontal cortex: emotionality in present state vs goal state
What is happening in neural circuitry
- Value information
- Action
Neuromodulator system: Dopamine
Theories of goal setting
ABC Method (Larkin and Small)
* Achievable, believable, committed
SMART Method
* Specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time bound
SMARTER Method
* Specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time bound, ethical, and realistic
What is a mindset?
A core belief or assumption that we have about a particular domain that orients us to a particular set of expectations, explanations, or goal setting
Growth mindset
The belief that one’s personal qualities are malleable, changeable, and can be developed through effort.
Fixed mindset
The belief that one’s personal qualities
are fixed, set, and not open to change
Where do mindsets come from?
- Upbringing
- Culture
- Influential others
- Conscious choice
What predicts motivational patterns?
- Intelligence vs effort praise
- Generic language: Focuses on the group as a whole vs individuals (e.g., ”girls are bad at math”)
- Gender
Self-Efficacy
Judgment of how well (or poorly) one expects to cope with a situation, given the skills one possesses and the circumstances one faces.
Self-efficacy theory
perceived inefficacy in coping leads to
anxiety
