Motivation and Emotion - In this section, we will examine motives, motivation, and some
related theoretical perspectives.
Then, we'll look at Emotions, some of the components or elements to emotions, and some
theoretical perspectives
Motivation
Some "Why" questions: Why do you go to class each day? Why did Cain kill Abel? Why do
students study for hours (sometimes even days) to pass examinations (and don't say, "to pass
examinations")? Why do professors teach students, and why do they test students? Why did you
pick out those shoes or those pants to wear today?
Each of these questions has an answer...there is some motive for engaging in those behaviors.
We may define a motive (or motivation) as a need, want, interest, or desire that propels
someone (or an organism) in a certain direction.
This motivating mechanism can be called many things--a habit, a belief, a desire, an instinct, a
need, an interest, a compulsion, or a drive--but no matter what its label, it is this motivation that
prompts us to take action. Indeed, the motivation comes from the verb "to move."
Some Introductory Psychology books define the field of motivation as the study of goal-directed
behavior. With this definition in mind, are humans the only type of living organism that can
have motivation? (this is for you to think about, not a question I am going to answer for you at
this point)
I. Theoretical Perspectives
A) Instinct Theories
Many of the different theories of motivation are similar, except for the amount of emphasis they
place on either biology or environment. Most include some level of both (some nature, some
nurture). However, there is one theory that completely emphasizes biology...Instinct theory.
1) Instinct Theory -- states that motivation is the result of biological, genetic programming. Thus,
all beings within a species are programmed for the same motivations.
a) At the heart of this perspective, is the motivation to survive - we are biologically programmed
to survive. And, all of our behaviors and motivations stem from biological programming. Thus,
are actions are instincts.
For example, a human mother, unlike many other species, will stay awake with a crying infant
all night long trying to provide comfort. Why? Instinct theory suggests that she is programmed to
behave in this manner - it is not due to learning or conditioning, not to being raised properly or
poorly, not to having strong female role models or weak role models, or anything else, other that
pure biology.
This perspective is very much the sort that was offered recently in the controversial article that
stated, Parents don't matter that much in the development of their children.
b) William McDougal (1908) - influential theorist who viewed instincts as behavior patterns that
are:
1. unlearned
2. uniform in expression
3. universal in a species
For example, within a species of bird, all the members may build identical nests and work in the
same ways. This is true even for those birds of that species born and raised in captivity and
isolation, and thus could not have learned the appropriate nest building behavior from other,
experienced role model birds.
McDougal carried it a step further by stating that humans are the same and have instincts for
behaviors such as: parenting, submission, jealousy, mating, and more.
c) Problems with this perspective
1. theorists have never been able to agree on a list of instincts; Many instincts are NOT universal
and seem to be more dependent on individual differences (for example, jealousy. Not all humans
exhibit the same jealously levels, behaviors, etc.).
2. today - instinct theory has a more biological emphasis for specific motives and not all (like
aggression and sex). But, there is still a strong instinct perspective in the study of animals
(ethology)
B) Sociobiological Perspective (Sociobiology) -- the study of genetic and evolutionary bases
of behavior in all organisms, including humans. This view spawned from instinct theory, but
it is not purely an instinct theory.
1) Major Viewpoint - sociobiology states that natural selection favors social behaviors that
maximize reproductive success. Thus, the primary motivating force for living organisms
(including humans) is to pass on our genes from one generation to the next.
This theory, inspired by Charles Darwin, argues that in the last 15 million years the human
species has evolved socially as well as physically. Through the process of natural selection,
individuals who were even slightly predisposed to engage in adaptive social behaviors were the
"fittest" and tended to survive longer and to be more successful in passing their genes along to
future generations. Over countless generations, this selection process weeded out individuals
who lacked these predispositions and those who possessed them prospered. Even though these
tendencies may not enhance our fitness in today's world, eons spent in harsher environments
have left us genetically predisposed to perform certain social behaviors when situational cues
call forth ancient instincts
Instinct theory argued that people try to survive, and that any quality that increases survival will
eventually become genetically based. However, sociobiology has changed this view slightly by
arguing that the organism's fundamental goal is not mere survival, or even the survival of its
offspring. Rather, the fittest individual is the one that succeeds in passing the maximum number
of genes on to the next generation. Why, for example, do animals go to all the trouble of
breeding and raising offspring? Because having children is an extremely effective means of
ensuring the survival of one's genes in a future generation. Caring for offspring may seem selfsacrificing, but these actions are prompted by the gene's selfish tendency to seek survival at all
costs. Even if the parent perishes protecting its young, its genes will continue to flourish in its
offspring. To Darwin, the fittest animal is the one that can survive longest. To Hamilton, the
fittest animal is the one that maximizes the survival of its genes in future generations.
2) This perspective can explain motives such as competition, aggression, sexual activity, and
dominance.
3) It can also explain differences in men and women's mating preferences. For example:
In one study an attractive man or woman (the researchers' accomplice) asked strangers of the
opposite sex one of the following questions: "I have been noticing you around campus. I find you
very attractive." The accomplice then asked one of the following questions, depending on the
group the subject had been assigned to: (a) "Would you go out with me tonight"; (b) "Would you
come over to my apartment tonight?" (c) "Would you go to bed with me tonight?"
The Results: None of the women agreed to the third request compared to the 75% hit rate for
men. Is it possible that the differences were due to instincts or do you think they must be due to
something else?
In another example: Studies have shown that women are more likely to engage in extramarital
affairs during ovulation, when they are more likely to get pregnant (the studies did NOT state or
even insinuate that the women were making conscious efforts to get pregnant from a male other
than their spouse or boyfriend, only that women were indeed more likely to be ovulating during
the time they decided to have the extramarital affairs).
4) Seems Selfish - this perspective may seem selfish, but it can also explain seemingly altruistic
behaviors:
For example: A Blackbird will risk death to signal the flock that a hawk (a predator) is nearby?
In so doing, the Blackbird increases its chance of getting killed, but also increases the chances of
the other Blackbirds surviving and, therefore, increasing the odds that more genes will be passed
on.
an organism will risk its own life to keep the possibility of passing on familial genes alive.
Others of the same genetic strain will survive and keep the gene pool going even if that particular
bird does not.
so this may be a selfish perspective, but it has the potential to produce remarkably unselfish
behavior.
C) Drive Theories
a) A Drive is an internal state of tension that motivates an organism to engage in activities
that should (hopefully) reduce this tension.
b) Most organisms seem to try and maintain Homeostasis - a state of physiological equilibrium.
For example, we have a homeostatic temperature of 98.6 degrees Farenheight. If this temperature
begins to waiver enough you have a number of possible autonomic responses: if temperature
increases, you perspire. If temperature decreases, you shiver.
So, when you experience a drive, you are motivated to reduce this state of tension and pursue
actions that will lead to a drive reduction (reduce the state of tension).
For Example - hunger leads to physical discomfort (internal tension - drive), which leads to the
motivation to get food, which leads to eating, which leads to a reduction in physical tension
(drive reduction), which finally leads to the restoration of equilibrium.
c) There are some problems:
1) homeostasis seems irrelevant to some human motives - "thirst for knowledge"...what the heck
is that?
2) motivation may exist without a drive arousal. For example, humans do not eat only when they
are hungry. Don't believe me? Ever go out for a nice dinner, eat enough to be full, but then still
decide to have that great chocolate desert anyway? I thought so.
D) Incentive Theory
An incentive may be defined as an external goal that has the capacity to motivate behavior. This
does not mean that it will always motivate behavior, only that it can.
Now, we get to a situation in which we can see a difference with previous theories:
Drive theory acts by an internal state pushing you in a specific direction. However, incentive
theory acts when an external stimulus pulls you in a certain direction.
This is directly related to Skinner. Here we can see a move away from biological influence
toward the environment and its influence on behavior. You attend class not because you were
biologically programmed to become a student, but rather, because there is something external
that is rewarding to you. Is it the grade you seek? Is it the desire to avoid going into the job
market? Is it the desire to obtain a better job with a degree than possible without one? Regardless
which it is, the idea is that the motivation is something external, not internal.
E) Malsow's Need Hierarchy
This Humanistic perspective is a blend of biological and social needs and is a sweeping overview
of human motivation. Because Maslow believed that all needs vary in strength, he arranged them
in a pyramidal form to indicate which have more strength. The most basic needs (like shelter and
food) are vital to daily survival, and are at the bottom, while needs that are less important to
staying alive are higher on the pyramid.
We may define the Need Hierarchy as - a systematic arrangement of needs according to
priority, which assumes that basic needs must be met before less basic needs are aroused.
Thus, like stage theories, we must meet one need before we move on to the next.
Levels:
1) physiological - these include the need for food, water, and other vital components of life. If
these needs are not met, the organism can't survive. Thus, these are the most basic and important.
2) safety and security - these needs refer more to the long term survival than day to day needs.
Humans tend to seek out order and have a desire to live in a world that is not filled with chaos
and danger. As a result, they seek out stable lives with careers, homes, insurance, etc.
3) belongingness and love - after obtaining a safe environment to live and establishing some long
term plans, people seek out love and affection from family members, friends, and lovers.
4) esteem - at this level, people become concerned with self-esteem which may be based on
achievements that they earn, recognition from others for jobs they do, etc.
5) cognitive - needs at this level are based on acquiring knowledge and understanding of the
world, people, behavior, etc. If you are in college to learn (not simply to get a degree) then you
are attempting to fulfill your cognitive needs.
6) aesthetic - aesthetic needs include beauty and order in life. Getting your life in order may
provide a sense of comfort that people often lack. In addition, spending time finding and
observing beauty in the world becomes an option and a desire as people do not have to struggle
and fight to stay alive. Remember the episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation in which
people from our century who had been frozen are found and thawed? These people could not
understand that money was no longer important, that starvation had been abolished on Earth, and
that people now had the opportunity and will to better themselves through learning about art,
music, etc. Picard was preaching the aesthetic level of Maslow's hierarchy.
7) self-actualization - this is the highest and most difficult level to reach. In fact, according to
Maslow, very few people actually reach this level. Self-actualization is the need to fulfill one's
own potential. As Maslow stated, "What a man can be, he must be." Interestingly, Maslow
indicated that people will be frustrated if they can't pursue their true loves and talents. For
example, if a person has a talent for painting, but they become a doctor, they will be forever
frustrated because the need for self-actualization will be hindered.
Terms
Definitions
instinct
a complex behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species and is
unlearned.
motivation
a need or desire that energizes and directs behavior.
drive-reduction theory
the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a
drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need.
homeostasis
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.
incentive
a positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior.
hierarchy of needs
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.
glucose
the form of sugar that circulates in the blood and provides the major
source of energy for body tissues. When its level is low, we feel hunger.
basal metabolic rate
the body's resting rate of energy expenditure.
set point
the point at which an individual's "weight thermostat" is supposedly set.
When the body falls below this weight, an increase in hunger and
alowered metabolic rate may act to restore the lost weight.
anorexia nervosa
an eating disorder in which a normal-weight person (usually an
adolescent female) diets and becomes significantly (15 percent or more)
underweight, yet, still feeling fat, continues to starve.
bulimia nervosa
an eating disorder characterized by episodes of overeating, usually of
high-calorie foods, followed by vomiting, laxative use, fasting, or
excessive exercise.
sexual response cycle
the four stages of sexual responding described by Masters and
Johnson—excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution. estrogen a sex
hormone, secreted in greater amounts by females than by males. In
nonhuman female mammals, estrogen levels peak during ovulation,
promoting sexual receptivity
refractory period
a resting period after orgasm, during which a man cannot achieve
another orgasm.
sexual disorder
a problem that consistently impairs sexual arousal or functioning.
testosterone
the most important of the male sex hormones. Both males and females
have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth
of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of the male sex
characteristics during puberty.
sexual orientation
an enduring sexual attraction toward members of either one's own sex
(homosexual orientation) or the other sex (heterosexual orientation).
flow
a completely involved, focused state of consciousness, with diminished
awareness of self and time, resulting from optimal engagement of one's
skills.
achievement motivation
desire for significant accomplishment: for mastery of things, people, or
ideas: for attaining a high standard which can involve both intrinsic and
extrinsic factors social leadership group-oriented leadership that builds
teamwork, mediates conflict, and offers support.
task leadership
goal-oriented leadership that sets standards, organizes work, and
focuses attention on goals.
primary drive
unlearned; found in all animals and humans; motivates behavior that is
vital to the survival of the individual/species; hunger, thirst, sex, sleep
secondary drive
no biological, but learned and experienced....achieve academically and
professionally
homeostasis
A state of physiological equilibrium or stability.
satiety
fullness
lateral hypothalamus
the part of the hypothalamus that produces hunger signals
ventromedial hypothalamus
the part of hypothalamus that produces satiety signals
insulin
hormone released by pancreas reduces blood glucose
PYY
a hormone in the digestive tract which tells the brain when a person is
not hungry.
leptin
hormone that signals the brain that satiety has occured
orexin
hunger-triggering hormone secreted by hypothalamus
ghrelin
a hunger-arousing hormone secreted by an empty stomach
settling point theory
weight remains stable as long as no durable changes are present that
influence it
Kinsey
psychologist who used survey method to study the sexual habits of
Americans
Masters and Johnson
psychologists that studied the sexual response cycle using lab
experiments
intrinsic motivation
desire to perform a behavior for its own sake and to be effective
extrinsic motivation
desire to perform a behavior due to promised rewards or threats of
punishment.
human factors psychology
branch of psychology that explores how people and machines interact
and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and
easy to use
optimum arousal theory
Rather than reducing physiological need or minimizing tension, some
motivated behaviors increase arousal. Curiosity-driven and trill seaking
behaviors, suggest that too little or too much stimulation can motivate
people to seek a higher level arousal that is right for them
Yerkes Dodson
explains the relationship between arousal and performance and when
graphed it forms an inverted U - moderate arousal is generally best and
higher for easy tasks and lower for hard ones
Management Theory X
managers that believe employees will only work if rewarded with
benefits or threatened with punishments- assumes people dislike work
& do whatever they can to avoid it. Leads to:
Management Theory Y
managers believe employees are internally motivated to do good work
and polices should encourage this internal motive.
need for affliation
need be part of a social group
need for affiliation
desire to associate with others, to be part of a group, to form close and
intimate relationships
physiological needs
the base needs of Maslow's pyramid which include air, water, and food
safety needs
Security, stability, order, protection, and freedom from fear or danger –
Maslow's second level on the hierarchy of needs
belonging or love needs
third level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs including the need to be
loved and love, affiliation and avoidance of loneliness
esteem needs
fourth level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs including self esteem,
achievement, independence, recognition and respect
self actualization
needs the fifth and top level of Maslow's pyramid of needs - involves
the need to reach your own unique potential
Abraham Maslow
humanistic psychologist who developed a theory of motivation that
emphasized psychological growth and a pyramid of needs
Thematic Apperception Test
projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests
through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes which can be
used to measure achievement and affiliation motivation