motivation and emotion

motivation

motivation:

need or desire that energizes and directs behavior

instinct theory:

instincts are complex unlearned behaviors, have a fixed pattern throughout a species

ex: birds flying south

doesnt explain motivation in humans because humans no longer have instincts

has been replaced by evolutionary perspective for humans - explains things like mating patterns

evolutionary perspective:

how have humans and their innate behaviors evolved over time

explains things like mating patterns

drive reduction theory:

a physiological/biological urge/DRIVE to do something causes an arousal state, people need to do something in order to REDUCE that drive

ex: people get hungry and have the DRIVE to eat, and eating will REDUCE that drive

people reduce to get back to a normal state, called homeostasis

arousal theory:

we are driven to maintain certain levels of arousal (state of activity)

drive:

push to do something

homeostasis:

balanced state of the body

with drive theory, we are driven to return the body to homeostasis by doing something

abraham maslow:

psychologist who came up w the hierarchy of needs

we need the things at the bottom of the pyramid (food, water, family/friends/love) before we can attain the things on the top (self-actualization)

yerkes-dodson law:

that funky curve thing

performance is typically best when arousal is at a medium level

performance goes up as arousal goes up but only up to a certain point

too much or too little is ineffective

charles darwin:

father of the evolutionary perspective, which discusses how factors of humans’ life in the past might have caused them to act the way that they do/be motivated by certain things now

incentive theory:

when something is pulling you to do something, which makes you motivated to do it

supported by skinner bc it is similar to operant conditioning

physiological needs:

food and water, shelter, etc

motivation to do things that get them (drive theory)

need:

when something is necessary for survival and someone will do whatever needed to obtain it (very driven/motivated to do it)

incentive:

something used in order to motivate someone to do something

something that makes someone want to do something in order to get to the incentive

ex: prize money

self-actualization:

to realize one’s OWN full potential

self-transcendence:

need to realize the possibilities beyond oneself/find identity and meaning beyond oneself

safety needs:

security in the aspects of ones life (job, relationships, finances, etc)

hierarchy needs (steps):

  1. physiological

  2. safety

  3. love/belonging

  4. esteem

  5. self-actualization

instinct:

something we are driven to do because of an unconscious urge

hunger

effects of starvation:

lower brain function because of lack of glucose to fuel the brain

glucose:

fuels the brain and the body, major source of energy

feeds neurons

hunger is triggered when glucose levels are low

hypothalamus:

sends hunger message to the brain once glucose levels are running low

lateral hypothalamus:

hunger center

animals will eat when the lateral hypothalamus is stimulated

when it is destroyed they will not eat (starve)

lat = fat

ventromedial hypothalamus:

satiation center

animals will stop eating when the ventromedial hypothalamus is stimulated

when it is destroyed they will not stop eating (obesity)

set point:

one point at which one weighs the right amount (+- like 10 pounds)

weight loss = hunger increases

weight gain = hunger decreases

slow weight loss can change set point

obestatin:

hunger suppressing hormone, produced in stomach

basal metabolic rate:

rate of energy used for bodily functions

the rate you metabolize food

social facilitation:

social pressure to eat can lead to weight gain (conformity)

modeling eating a lot + weight gain can lead to weight gain (modeling)

cultures idealize certain body types, leading to changed eating habits in order to fit those

anorexia nervosa:

starving oneself

bulimia nervosa:

binge eating followed by purging (throwing up, excessive exercise, etc

binge eating disorder:

binge eating

obesity:

once someone becomes fat they require less calories to maintain their weight

becoming fat = fat cells inflate and then split, leading to more fat cells

losing weight = fat cells deflate, they do not decrease

once a fat person loses weight, they will still have a slower metabolism and have to eat fewer calories

insulin:

hormone produced in pancreas that moves glucose into bloodstream and liver for storage

fat cells:

they inflate when there is an excess of calories, and when they become very full they split, and then there are more

when weight is lost fat cells do not decrease, they deflate

sleep loss:

causes people to be more hungry

increases ghrelin, leads to weight gain

genetic factors of weight:

set point, basal metabolic rate, number of fat cells

ghrelin:

hunger arousing hormone, produced in stomach, part of circadian rhythm

sexual motivation

estrogen:

female sex hormone, responsible for the growth of female sex organs

testosterone:

male sex hormone, responsible for the growth of male sex organs

masters and johnson:

created sexual response cycle after studying over 700 men and women

sexual response cycle (has four stages):

excitement, plateau, orgasm, resolution (and then refractory period for men)

alfred kinsey:

developed kinsey scale to measure sexual orientation

created sexology

sexology:

study of sex basically

study of sexual interests, behaviors, and functions

kinsey scale:

scale to measure homosexuality

only heterosexual = 0

only homosexual = 6

sexual orientation:

who youre attracted to

need to belong

evolutionary psychology:

evolutionary perspective says that staying together in groups in the early days helped humans survive, so therefore it remains beneficial to us

conformity:

people tend to act the way that others are acting in order to not feel left out so that they can have friends

ostracism:

when one is seen as an outsider in a community

affiliation motive:

our motivation to belong

motivation at work and GRIT

industrial/organizational psychology:

branch of psychology that focuses on ensuring the mental wellbeing of office workers and other workers

achievement motivation:

desire to achieve things

intrinsic motivation:

motivated to do something out of your own “heart”/willingness, not any other factors

low need for achievement:

people tend to choose either very easy or almost impossible goals

avoidance-avoidance conflict

situations that have two negative options

overjustification effect:

when someone is rewarded for something too much and is no longer motivated to do the something anymore, they just want the reward

david mcclelland:

identified achievement motivation

created the tat test

self-efficacy:

belief in one’s own ability to succeed

approach-approach:

situations with two positive options

mutliple approach-avoidance conflict:

several options, but have both positive and negative

thematic aperception test:

tat test

measures:

need for affiliation

need for power

need for achievement

extrinsic motivation:

motivation due to outside factor, not internal motivation

high need for achievement:

people choose moderately challenging tasks, they avoid easy tasks because there is no challenge and hard tasks because there is too much of a challenge/low chance of success

they need constant achievement or need to work with other high achievers

approach-avoidance conflict:

situations in which the option has both positive and negative consequences

grit:

perseverance, resilience, determination, etc