Summary of Motivation
http://education.calumet.purdue.edu/vockell/edPsybook/Edpsy5/edpsy5_attribution.htm
Dr. Ed Vockell, Professor, Educational Psychology and Research, Graduate Studies in Education, Purdue University
Edward L. Vockell, Ph.D., Professor of Education, teaches graduate courses in educational psychology, education research, and instructional computing.
His chapter discusses strategies for enticing individuals or groups of learners to actively pursue instructional outcomes. The major
principles related to motivation, problems posed by these principles, and solutions to these problems are summarized in Table 5.4.
While motivation is not the only factor necessary in order for learning to take place, it is also true that without sufficient motivation,
not much learning is likely to occur.
Table 5.4. Principles of Motivation and Problems That Interfere with the Application of These Principles.
Principle
Practical Problems and Solutions
Only consequences that the learner himself or
herself perceives to be reinforcing will motivate that
learner.
Teacher may not have control of intrinsic
motivators.

Work to understand the perspective of the
learner through communication and rapport.

Understand and apply principles of personality
and developmental psychology.

Work to gain control through communication
and rapport.
Seek help from others who do control intrinsic
motivators.
Promote self motivation.
Clarify and demonstrate the intrinsic value of
the outcome.
State learning outcomes in specific, behavioral
terms.
Use prestigious models.
Foster affective attachment to the outcome.
Understand and promote developmental
principles.
Use artificial incentives until intrinsic

1. It is better to rely on intrinsic rather than
extrinsic motivation.


Intrinsic motivator may not currently be of interest
to the learner.





1
incentives become possible.

Artificial motivators run counter to the
previous principle.
2. When natural consequences are not
available, it is often necessary to use
artificial consequences to motivate learners.


Teacher may not know of or have control over
effective artificial reinforcers.


Use artificial reinforcers that are as close to natural
as possible.
Back up artificial reinforcers with natural
reinforcers.
Work to gain control of natural reinforcers through
communication and rapport.
Seek help from others who do control extrinsic
motivators.
Promote self-motivation

Teacher may not understand the complexity of the
thoughts and feelings of students.
3. Human beings have brains and
personalities that make their motivations
extremely complicated.
Foster understanding through
communication and rapport.
Develop cultural and multicultural
familiarity.


Various aspects of intellect and personality conflict with
one another and with desired outcomes.
Understand and apply principles of
attribution theory.
Understand and apply principles of
achievement motivation.
Seek input from experts who do
understand more than you do.
(See next principle and guidelines.)





4. There are numerous incentives and
consequences competing for a learner's
attention at any given time.
Competing outcomes may distract learner from desired
outcome.


Learner may actually be motivated more by a competing,
undesirable outcome.

Remove competing outcomes.
Reduce incentive value of competing
outcomes.
Increase incentive value of desired
outcome.
Remove competing outcomes.
Apply disincentives for competing
outcomes.
2



Increase incentive value of desired
outcome.
Understand and apply the principles of group
dynamics.
Develop positive group atmosphere through
communication and rapport
Solicit help from other students.
Employ cooperative learning.
Use competition and recognition effectively.
Communicate and establish rapport with the
family of the learner.
Interactions with other students may detract from
motivation.




Interactions with environment outside learning
situation may detract from motivation.

Develop cultural and multicultural familiarity.

Avoid accidental misapplications of principles
of behavior modification.
Avoid negative expectancies.
Develop positive expectancies.
5. Social interactions with others influence
the motivation of learners.
Interactions with teacher may detract from
learning.
Excessively low level of arousal may
interfere with tendency to learn.
6. Physiological factors influence
motivation.
Excessively high level of arousal may
interfere with tendency to learn.






Use variety in presentations.
Use high interest material in presentations.
Use humor in presentations.
Avoid psychological states related to low levels of arousal
(tiredness, digestion after meals, warm rooms, etc.)


Emphasize familiar routines and elements that are constant.
Refrain from introducing topics or information that may
arouse anxiety.
Use desensitization or other techniques to reduce anxiety.
Avoid information overload.


3
This overview has shown that motivation consists of individual and interpersonal factors that stimulate learners to action. The
individual factors include challenge (where the learner is motivated to attain a goal), curiosity (where the learner is motivated by a
physical stimulus or by a cognitive discrepancy), control (where the learner is motivated by the need to be in control of his/her
environment), and fantasy (where learners are motivated by mental images of situations not actually present). The interpersonal
factors include competition (where the learner is motivated by comparisons with other learners), cooperation (where the learner is
motivated by an urge to help others perform productively), and recognition (where the learner is motivated by having others
appreciate his/her accomplishments). These factors operate alone and in combination to stimulate and inhibit behavior, and teachers
can make learning environments more motivating by incorporating more of these factors into instructional settings.
This chapter has also described the relationship between the principles of behavior modification and the motivation of learners. This
chapter has also shown how motivation is related to affective and personality characteristics, such as the needs and self-esteem of the
learner.
Attribution theory interprets motivation in terms of the explanations learners give for their successes and failures. The chapter
suggests several guidelines for helping students develop productive attributions that are likely to stimulate further intellectual activity.
Finally, this chapter has examined the impact of teacher expectancy on the behavior of learners. Teacher expectancies sometimes lead
to self-fulfilling prophecies, by which teachers inappropriately treat students in selective or discriminative manners based on what they
expect those students to be capable of doing. When teachers have preconceived notions that learners are likely to be unsuccessful, the
result is often that they treat these learners in such a way as to lead to inferior outcomes. The chapter suggests ways to minimize the
harmful impacts of negative teacher expectancy.
By following the guidelines discussed in this chapter, teachers can develop environments that are likely to stimulate learners to want
to learn. By integrating these guidelines with those discussed throughout the rest of this book, teachers can stimulate learners to
successful learning.
Click on a topic from the following list, or use your web browser to go where you want to go:
Introduction
Motivation
Intrinsic Motivation
Challenge
Curiosity
Control
Fantasy
4
Interpersonal Motivation
Summary of Intrinsic Motivation
Motivating Through Curriculum
Reinforcement and Punishment
Affective Aspects of Motivation
Physiological Aspects of Motivation
Cognitive Aspects of Motivation
Needs and Motivation
Self-Efficacy
Attribution Theory
Development and Motivation
Motivation as a Personality Characteristic
Teacher Expectancy
Social Aspects of Motivation: Classroom Structure
What Teachers Can Do About Motivation
What Parents Can Do About Motivation
What Students Can Do About Motivation
Chapter Summary <<You are here>>
Annotated Bibliography
Footnotes
Answers to Quizzes
Readability — An Arc90 Laboratory Experiment — http://lab.arc90.com/experiments/readabilityFollow us on Twitter »
Follow us on Twitter »Readability version 1.5.0
5