Motivation and wellbeing

what is motivation

generally described as the force that consciously or unconsciously drives us o pursue a goal, accounts for the behaviour that individuals initiate, direct and maintain

sources of motivation

physiological, cognitive, emotional, social

physiological factors

a biological motive that is necessary for survival and they motivate most human behaviour

example: hunger, thirst, need for sleep

cognitive factors

driven by our beliefs and values and include intellectual challenges due to intrinsic satisfaction they produce and the drive to satisfy curiosity

example: personal values, goals in life, self-efficacy

emotional factors

stem from trying to avoid pain and seeking happiness. Positive an negative emotions drive us to continue activities that give us positive emotions and resolve those that give us negative emotions.

example: negative - fear, panic, anger, positive - love, joy, excitement

social factors

the need to be with other people or a sense of belong which drives humans to develop social interactions and relationships

example: influence of others, social media, peer pressure, gaining social acceptance

Self determination theory ( deci and ryan, 1985)

• focus in how people are motivated by both internal and external factors

• emphasises the importance of autonomy, competence and relatedness as fundamental psychological needs that drive motivation and wellbein

• suggests that when these needs are met, individuals are more likely to be intrinsically motivated, experience greater satisfaction and develop a sense of wellbeing

• people are driven by a need to grow and gain fulfillment and that this need for growth influences motivation, behaviour and well-being

3 psychological needs that drive behaviour

autonomy, competence, relatedness

individuals perform behaviours because they are driven to satisfy 3 basic psychological factors which are intertwined and underpin an individuals’ type of motivation which then impacts their behaviour

Relatedness

people have a longing to form social connections and be a part of meaningful relationships with others, feel a sense of belonging, part of a social group, or being needed and cared for

competence

the need to feel effective and capable in one’s actions, that we have the skills required to complete work ourselves and can experience success

Autonomy

the need for people to feel in control of their own choices and actions, the feeling that we have the freedom to make our own choices and not feeling forced to do something we don’t want

three types of motivation

Amotivation, extrinsic and intrinsic

Amotivation - lack of motivation

lack of intrinsic or extrinsic motivation

People become amotivated toward a behaviour when the environment does not allow for the behaviour to be carried out competently.

 

-        Non-intentional, Lack of control, Incompetence

Extrinsic

arises from outside of the individual and involves a desire for external rewards

a means to an end

example: trophies, money, awards, praise

Intrinsic

internal and arises from within the individual driven by an inner/inherent desire for self-satisfaction arising from achieving a specific goal

an end in itself

example: completing a puzzle purely for the gratification of solving a problem

SDT Assumptions

1. the need for growth drives behaviour

2. autonomous motivation is important

SDT strengths

widely applicable across different cultures and contexts as 3 psychological needs are viewed as being universal

intrinsic motivation is the crucial aspect that supports the tendency for people to participate in activities that they find enjoyable, as opposed to engaging in them to receive extrinsic emotions

SDT limitations

strong emphasis on autonomy is argued to minimise the influence that external rewards have on motivation

multiple components within the theory are complex and limit the ability to comprehend and apply it

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (1954)

1)   Maslow believed that human behaviour is governed by a person’s desire for personal growth, that people have an innate desire to be self - actualised

2)     proposed  hierarchy of needs and considered that individuals must satisfy their more basic nee, at least particular before they are able to address and satisfy the higher level - needs.

3)     satisfying the 5 needs is indicative of my growth and development , through my life in reaching ,y full potential

Level one: physiological needs

biological needs for human survival which drives behaviour

e.g food, water, warmth, rest, sex

level two : safety needs

Safety needs involve physical safety and emotional safety. Emotional safety provides security allowing individuals to display their authentic self with others. 

 

-        Physical safety - protection from elements, security, order, law, stability, limits.

-        Emotional safety - feeling free from chaos, threats, and fear.

level three: love and belongingness needs

The need for interpersonal relationships motivates behaviour.

individuals seek social connections and the need to form close relationships

level four: esteem need

Maslow classified into two categories

self - esteem: : Esteem for oneself; are based on the need for people to view themselves as capable and achieving,

respect from others: : those that come from the judgement of others i.e. the desire for reputation or respect from others

level five - self actualisation needs

the innate desire to reach one’s full potential and seeking personal growth

Deficiency needs verse growth needs

1.     deficiency needs: basic needs people are motivated to fulfil due to their absence or deprivation

2.     growth needs: needs that are once met, act as the motivation for people to continue fulfilling them, they don’t stem from a lack of something, but rather from a desire to grow as a person

Maslow’s expanded hierarchy of needs (1970)

in 1970 Maslow added three more growth needs to the hierarchy including cognitive, aesthetic and the highest level, transcendence , total 8 stages

level five - cognitive needs

the mental process of gaining knowledge and understanding through the sense, personal experiences and mental activity

level six - aesthetic needs

beauty as well as the as the appreciation of anything beautiful and aesthetically pleasing including symmetry, rightness and balance

level eight ; transcendence needs

the experience of going beyond the limitations of physical human experience such as peak experiences and the need to connect to something beyond and higher than ourselves

concept of self - actualisation

·       one’s need to live up to their full potential

·       people who are fulfilled and doing all they were capable of

·       only 2% of people would reach the state of self-actualisation

Characteristics if a self - actualised person

1. accept themselves and others for what they are

2. highly creative

3. peak experiences

4. need for privacy

Maslow strengths

·       focused on healthy human psychological development which was uncommon at the time

·       contributions to teaching and classroom management, ensuring bottom needs are met before cognitive needs

Maslow limitations

·       sample was small and made up to be of those he believed were self-actualised

·       no objective measures were used, only subjective which leads to bias and low validity and makes it difficult to generalise to the wider population

wellbeing

feeling happy and content, and being in a positive state with one’s life

subjective wellbeing

a person’s overall evaluation of their life that is personal to the individual, encompassing both their cognitive appraisal and their affective appraisal

Two components that make up the concept of subjective wellbeing - 1. life satisfaction

  the cognitive component of one’s wellbeing that involves an individual making a personal evaluation of their life or experiences or the cognitive appraisal one makes of their life which involves comparing their current life with their own standards and expectations

Two components that make up the concept of subjective wellbeing - 2. affective wellbeing

the emotional component, made up of positive and negative affect or measures, the absence of negative affect is not the same as the presence of positive affect

 

Affect

the experience and outward expression of emotions and moods

Positive affect

pleasant emotions such as happiness, excitement and joy

negative emotions

distressing emotions such as anger, sadness and anxiety

Diener’s theory of subjective wellbeing ( 1984)

three distinct, but often interrelated components of wellbeing

1. frequent positive affect

2. infrequent negative affect

3. cognitive evaluations such as life satisfaction.

diener: strengths

• applicable across multiple cultural contexts

• is comprehensive and holistic approach

Diener Limitations

external factors aren’t considered in the model such as relationships, work and finance

conscious judgements held toward an attitude object tend to be less accurate representations of true attitudes

ryff’s theory of psychological wellbeing (1989):

Ryff’s model of psychological wellbeing or the 6-factor ‘ as she believed the work of Diener lacked specific detail on overall psychological wellbeing as it focused only on life satisfaction and affect

six factors which are key for wellbeing

in notes

Ryff strengths

provides a powerful framework through which to analyse and organise one’s life

generates ideas about how to live better or how to have a good life

supported empirically via PWB

Ryff limitations

additional factors such as economic and social factors aren’t accounted for

minimal consideration for negative affect and the ways people are able to cope with adversity and hardship

comparison of models of motivation (maslow and deci/ryan) - similarities

both focus on understanding human motivation and the influence of motivation on behaviour

emphasise the importance of psychological needs for wellbeing

recognise intrinsic factors influencing behaviour

comparison of models of motivation (maslow and deci/ryan) - difference

Maslow proposed hierarchy of needs, suggesting motivation is driven by unmet needs in a sequential order

Deci and Ryan developed SDT that emphasised 3 basic psychological needs that foster intrinsic motivation which can be pursued simultaneously