Motivation

Question 1

What causes behaviour?

Answer 1

IPGOCHT

•Initiation: Why does behavior start?
•Persistence: Why is it sustained over time?
•Goal-directedness: Why is it directed toward some
goals?
•Change: Why does it change?
•Termination: Why does it stop?

Question 2

What is motivation?

Answer 2

Force
acting within the organism or acting on the organism from outside
that activates, directs and maintains behavior

Question 3

Needs

Answer 3

necessary for maintenance of life, growth and well-being
biological (e.g. food) vs.
psychological (e.g. competence, belongingness)

Question 4

Cognitions:

Answer 4

mental events (beleifs, expectations, self-concept)

Question 5

Emotions:

Answer 5

phenomena with various aspects:

(1) subjective, (2) physiological, (3) functional, (4) expressive

Question 6

How can motivation be expressed?

Answer 6

Behaviour
Antecedents
Physiology
Self report

Question 7

Grand theories: Philosophical

Answer 7

•Early schools:
– free will
– behavior is organized by rationality and understanding
– responsibility
– our knowledge helps to decide what to do
•Descartes: animal vs. human
•British Empiricist:
– association (tabula rasa)
– hedonism

Question 8

Grand theories: Biology

Answer 8

Darwin
– animal = human
– most important motivating factor:
survival
– restricted environmental sources,
"survival of the fittest"
• Ernst Brücke
– Mechanistic biology (as opposed to the
earlier vitalistic and teleological
approaches)
– biological processes are based on
chemical and physical phenomena
– origin of freudism and behaviorism

Question 9

Grand theories: Psychiatry

Answer 9

•New concept of „illness”
•Freud’s drive theory
•Source
•Impetus
•Object
•Aim
•Unconsciouss, repressed
motives

Question 10

Grand theories: psychology

Answer 10

•Wundt: not discussed motivation
•BUT
•Instinct theories:
– W. James: functionalism
– McDougall
•The concept of drive
•Behaviorism
– instead of instinct: the LEARNED
nature of behavior is expressed

Question 11

Grand theories: Behaviorism

Answer 11

•Thorndike
– behavior is modifiable
– role of „effect”
(=consequence)
– low of „readiness”
•Pavlov: behavior is regulated
by the stimuli (as well)
•Watson: stimulus-response
(“S-R psychology”)