Psych Chapter 10

Motivation & Emotion

Motivation

dynamics of behavior that initiate, sustain, direct, and terminate actions

Motivated Activities

Need, Drive, Response, Goal

Incentive value

Goal’s appeal beyond its ability to fill a need

Need

Internal deficiency

Drive

Energized motivational state

Response

Action designed to attain goal

Goal

Target of motivated behavior

Drive Reduction Theory

The Drive-Reduction theory states that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need.

Primary Motive

•Innate (inborn) motives based on biological needs we must meet to survive

Stimulus Motive

Innate needs for stimulation and information

Secondary Motive

Based on learned needs, drives, and goals

Arousal Theory

assumes that people prefer to maintain ideal, or comfortable, levels of arousal.

Arousal

refers to the overall level of activation of the body and the nervous system

Sensation Seeking

Trait of people who prefer high levels of stimulation

Yerkes-Dodson Law

If a task is simple, it is best for arousal to be high; if it is complex, lower levels of arousal provide for the best performance

Circadian Rhythms

Cyclical changes in bodily functions and arousal levels that vary on a 24-hour schedule

Preadaptation

Gradual matching of sleep-waking cycles to a new time schedule before an anticipated circadian rhythm change.

Abraham Maslow

suggested that certain needs have priority over others. Physiological needs come before psychological need.

Physiological needs

need to satisfy hunger and thirst

Safety needs

need to feel safe, secure, and stable

Belongingness and love needs

need to loved and be loved; need to belong and be accepted

Esteem needs

•need for self-esteem, achievement, competence and independence

Self-actualization needs

need to live up to one’s fullest and unique potential

Intrinsic Motivation

Motivation coming from within, not from external rewards; based on personal enjoyment of a task

Extrinsic Motivation

Based on obvious external rewards, obligations, or similar factors (e.g., pay, grades)

Achievement motivation

A desire for significant accomplishment; for mastery of skills or ideas; for control; and for attaining a high standard.

The Physiology of Hunger

Stomach contractions (pangs) send signals to the brain making us aware of our hunger.

Stomachs Removed

Tsang (1938) removed rat stomachs, connected the esophagus to the small intestines, and the rats still felt hungry (and ate food).

Body Chemistry & the Brain

Levels of glucose in the blood are monitored by receptors (neurons) in the stomach, liver, and intestines. They send signals to the hypothalamus in the brain.

Hypothalamic Centers

The lateral hypothalamus (LH) brings on hunger (stimulation). Destroy the LH, and the animal has no interest in eating.

ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH)

depresses hunger (stimulation). Destroy the VMH, and the animal eats excessively.

Set Point

point where weight stays the same when you make no effort to gain or lose weight

Leptin

Substance released by fat cells that inhibits eating

Anorexia Nervosa

A condition in which a normal-weight person continuously loses weight but still feels overweight.

Bulimia Nervosa

A disorder characterized by episodes of overeating, usually high-calorie foods, followed by vomiting, using laxatives, fasting, or excessive exercise.

Extracellular Thirst

When water is lost from fluids surrounding the cells of the body

Intracellular Thirst

When fluid is drawn out of cells because of increased concentration of salts and minerals outside the cell

Sex drive

refers to the strength of one’s motivation to engage in sexual behaviors

Estrus

changes in the sexual drives of animals that create a desire for mating; particularly used to refer to females in heat.

Emotions

state characterized by physiological arousal and changes in facial expressions, gestures, posture, and subjective feelings

Adaptive Behaviors

Aid our attempts to survive and adjust to changing conditions

Mood

mildest form of emotion – low-intensity emotional states that can last for many hours, or days

Polygraph

Device that records heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, and galvanic skin response (GSR); lie detector

Irrelevant Questions

Neutral, emotional questions in a polygraph test

Relevant Questions

Questions to which only someone guilty should react by becoming anxious or emotional

Control Questions

Questions that almost always provoke anxiety in a polygraph

James-Lange Theory of Emotions

Emotional feelings follow bodily arousal and come from awareness of such arousal.

Schachter and Singer’s Two Factor Theory of Emotions

Emotions occur when a label is applied to general physical arousal.

Dutton & Aron bridge study

Participants walked over a high to low bridge. Those who walked the high were more likely to take the researchers number as a date.

Strack, Martin, & Stepper

Those who held the pen in their lips rated the cartoons as less funny.

Grit

(Angela Duckworth) matters. In psychology, it involves passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long-term goals.