Module 37: Motivation Concepts Flashcards
Motivation
A need or desire that energizes and directs behavior
How is motivation pushed or pulled from us?
Our motivations arise from the interplay between nature (the bodily “push”) and nurture (the “pull” from our personal experiences, thoughts, and culture).
*Our Motives drive our behavior
Instinct Theory
- our instincts as the source of our motivations
- states that the motivation to survive is the most important motivation and the innate behaviors that aid survival drive our motivations
- sounds quite a lot like evolutionary theory
Drive-Reduction Theory
The idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need
The idea that a physiological need creates an aroused state (a drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need and restore the body to homeostasis, or balance
Instinct
A complex behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species and is unlearned
ex. imprinting in birds, return of salmon in birthplace, infants’ innate reflexes
How do physiological needs create a drive?
Physiological needs (such as for food or water) create an aroused, motivated states - a drive (such as hunger or thirst)- that pushes us to behave in a way that reduces the need and returns the body to hemostasis
Homeostatis
A tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state; the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level
How does drive reduction theory explain how we regulate our body temperature?
Our body regulates its temperature similar to a thermostat
- feedback loops: our body’s temperature cools, our blood vessels constrict to conserve warmth, and we feel driven to put on more clothes or seek a warmer environment
How is behavior pulled by incentives?
Not only are we pushed by our need to reduce physiological drives, we also are pulled by incentives - positive or negative environmental stimuli that lure or repel us
Can one behavior be both pushed and pulled?
When there is both a biological need and an incentive, we feel strongly driven
Ex. food-deprived person smells pizza baking strong hunger drive and baking pizza may become a compelling incentive
Can curiosity be a motive?
Curiosity drives monkey to monkey around trying to figure out how to unlock a latch that opens nothing (Harlow)
- just wanting to understand and figure it out nothing else (no reward
How do humans seek optimal levels of arousal?
- having all our biological needs satisfied, we feel driven to experience stimulation
- lacking stimulation we feel bored and look for a way to increase arousal
- too much stimulation or stress we look for a way to decrease it
Yerkes-Dodson Law
The relationship of arousal to performance a
- moderate arousal leads to optimal performance
Yerkes-Dodson Law
The principle that performance increase with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases.
The relationship of arousal to performance a
- moderate arousal leads to optimal performance
Abraham Maslow’s Theory of Motivation
Theorized that human needs are hierarchical - some have priority over others
Hierarchy of Needs
Hierarchy of Needs
Begins at the base with physiological needs that must first be satisfied before higher level safety needs and then psychological needs are addressed
Hierarchy of Needs levels
Physiological needs, safety needs, belonging & love needs, esteem needs, self actualization needs, Self transcendence (add later)
Hierarchy of Needs levels
Maslow’s pyramid of human needs beginning at the base with physiological needs that must first be satisfied before higher-level safety needs and then psychological needs become active
Physiological needs, safety needs, belonging & love needs, esteem needs, self actualization needs, Self transcendence (add later)
Is the order of Maslow’s Hierarchy fixed?
The hierarchy is not universally fixed
- people have starved themselves (Ex. for political statements)
- culture also influences our priorities: self-esteem matters most in individualist nations, whose citizens tend to focus more on personal achievements than on family and community identity
Incentive
A positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior
