Motivation 2
Motivation in Psychology
Psychosocial Motives
Henry Murray's theory of psychosocial motives:
Motives are largely unconscious.
Behavior provides clues to motivation.
Defined "needs" as recurrent concerns for goal states, directing and energizing behavior.
Co-creator of Thematic Apperception Test (TAT).
Identified three primary needs: achievement, affiliation, and power.
The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
TAT measures unconscious motives through storytelling from ambiguous images.
Procedure: Look at a picture briefly (10-15 seconds), then write a story it suggests.
Need for Achievement
David McClelland:
Defines it as doing something better for innate satisfaction.
Involves achievement imagery: thoughts about performing tasks well, dealing with obstacles, and emotional responses tied to outcomes.
John W. Atkinson: focused on joy or sadness resulting from efforts.
Need for Power
The desire to have an impact on others through forceful actions.
Types of power include:
Controlling and influencing.
Helping or impressing others.
Nelson Mandela as an example of using socio-political power for social issues towards peace and equality.
Need for Affiliation
Concern with establishing, maintaining, or restoring friendly relations.
Traits include positive feelings about groups or individuals and engaging in friendly, nurturing acts.
Joseph Veroff emphasized cooperative emotional connections.
Characteristics of Needs
Individuals with high achievement motives:
Hard workers
Excel at challenging tasks
High power needs:
Effective leaders
High affiliation needs:
Good team players
Supportive friends and partners
Self-Reported Achievement Motives
Self-report agreement statements:
Set difficult personal goals.
Enjoy relaxation only after completing substantial work.
Strive intensely until satisfied with outcomes.
Find enjoyment in work equivalent to play.
Measurement of Needs
Needs are unconscious and cannot be accurately measured by self-reporting.
Self-reports correlate poorly with TAT results, which more accurately predict long-term behavioral trends.
Needs can switch between being states (situation-driven) and traits (stable characteristics).
Self-Determination Theory (SDT)
Deci & Ryan propose three basic organismic needs:
Competence: Need for self-efficacy, mastery, and achievement,
Relatedness: Need for warm relations and belonging, feeling pain from ostracism,
Autonomy: Need for independence and self-reliance.
Organismic needs are innate and focused on personal growth rather than deficit fulfillment.
Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic Motivation: Engaging in behaviors that fulfill organismic needs for enjoyment.
Extrinsic Motivation: Engaging in behaviors to receive rewards or avoid punishment.
Negative Impact of Rewards on Intrinsic Motivation:
Can reduce future performance and quality of complex tasks.
May inhibit creativity.
Sexual Motivation
Evolutionary Perspective: Sexual behaviors shaped by natural selection to enhance reproductive success.
Reproductive success involves passing genes effectively to future generations.
Strategies may involve high quantity but low investment (like fish) versus low quantity and high investment (like humans).
Parent Investment Theory:
Human birth and dependency are lengthy, typically requiring investment from both parents.
Emotional Bonding in Sexual Motivation
Sex often creates intense emotional bonds through neurotransmitters like endorphins and oxytocin, facilitating co-parenting.
Humans engage in sexual behavior for reasons beyond reproduction, utilizing methods such as birth control.
Cultural Restrictions on Sexual Behavior
Norms vary significantly across societies.
Rules regulating sexuality often correlate with social hierarchy; hierarchical societies may restrict women's sexuality more than egalitarian societies.
Gender Differences in Sexuality
Male Sexuality:
Typically reports stronger, more specific sex drives.
Higher frequency of arousal, sexual fantasies, and usage of pornography.
More likely to be unfaithful.
Female Sexuality:
More concealed, variable behavior.
Broader physical arousal to various stimuli, not always matching reported experiences.
Sexual Orientation
Defined as the direction of erotic interests.
Categories include heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual orientations.
Research indicates orientation is not affected by upbringing, parenting style, or childhood experiences.
Origins of Sexual Orientation
Homosexual behavior observed in non-human animals.
Variability in cultural contexts regarding the identity associated with homosexual behavior.
Estimates suggest 2-10% non-heterosexual orientation in humans.
Factors influencing sexual orientation include genetics (48-52% heritability for monozygotic twins) and prenatal hormones.
Self-Regulation & Motivation
Self-regulation is about controlling behavior to pursue broader objectives, particularly in situations requiring conflict resolution.
Delay of gratification involves resisting immediate rewards in favor of future payoffs.
Strategies:
Hot emotion/cool cognition:
Mitigate the allure of temptations by physical distance or mental distractions.
Implemental Intentions
Framework for applying strategies to achieve goals, as described by Peter Gollwitzer:
Goals should be specific and achievable within a timeframe.
Identify the steps and how to implement them effectively.
Public commitment and monitoring toward progress can enhance goal success.
Summary Motivation 2
Unconscious motives (TAT)
– Ach, Power, Affiliation
– Measurement of Needs
Self-Determination Theory
– Intrinsic/Extrinsic
– Competence, relatedness,
autonomy
Sexual Motivation
– Evolutionary perspective
– Culture’s influence
– Sexual behavior
– Gender differences
– Sexual orientation
Regulating Motivation
– Delay of gratification
– Resisting temptation
Goal success
– Implemental intentions
– Monitoring
– Commitment