Motivation and Emotion

What is motivation?
Motivation is the process that initiates, guides, and
maintains goal- oriented behaviors. Motivation is a force
that energizes, activates and directs behaviour. An inner
feeling which energizes a person to work more.
In 2006, Franken defined motivation as the “arousal,
direction and persistence of a person’s behaviour”.
Most theorists who proposed their own explanation of
motivation believe that any learned behaviour cannot be
executed unless it is energized. Thus, motivation is important
in performing all kinds of behaviour. Also, this means that
any changes in motivation reflect on an individual’s behavior.
We can say that motivation is the factor that direct and
energize the behavior of humans and other organisms.
Motivation is the willingness and desire to participate or do
something.
 5 theories of Motivation

Instinct Theory
All creatures are born with specific innate knowledge about how to
survive. Animals are born with the capacity and often times knowledge of
how to survive by spinning webs, building nests, avoiding danger, and
reproducing. These innate tendencies are preprogrammed at birth, they are in
our genes, and even if the spider never saw a web before, never witnessed its
creation, it would still know how to create one.
Drive Reduction Theory

According to Clark Hull (1943, 1952), humans have internal internal

biological needs which motivate us to perform a certain way. These needs, or
drives, are defined by Hull as internal states of arousal or tension which must
be reduced. A prime example would be the internal feelings of hunger or
thirst, which motivates us to eat. According to this theory, we are driven to
reduce these drives so that we may maintain a sense of internal calmness.
Arousal Theory
Similar to Hull's Drive Reduction Theory, Arousal theory states that we are driven to maintain
a certain level of arousal in order to feel comfortable. Arousal refers to a state of emotional,
intellectual, and physical activity. It is different from the above theory, however, because it
doesn't rely on only a reduction of tension, but a balanced amount. It also does better to
explain why people climb mountains, go to school, or watch sad movies.

Psychoanalytic Theory
Remember Sigmund Freud and his five part theory of personality. As part of this theory, he
believed that humans have only two basic drives: Eros and Thanatos, or the Life and Death
drives. According to Psychoanalytic theory, everything we do, every thought we have, and
every emotion we experience has one of two goals: to help us survive or to prevent our
destruction. This is similar to instinct theory, however, Freud believed that the vast majority of
our knowledge about these drives is buried in the unconscious part of the mind.
Humanistic Theory
Although discussed last, humanistic theory is perhaps the most well know theory of
motivation. According to this theory, humans are driven to achieve their maximum
potential and will always do so unless obstacles are placed in their way. These obstacles
include hunger, thirst, financial problems, safety issues, or anything else that takes our
focus away from maximum psychological growth.
The best way to describe this theory is to utilize the famous pyramid developed by
Abraham Maslow (1970) called the Hierarchy of Needs.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
 Extrinsic Intrinsic
• Extrinsic motivation are • Intrinsic motivation are those
those that arise from outside that arise from within the
of the individual and often individual.
involve rewards such as
trophies, money, social
recognition, or praise. • Intrinsic motivation is
evident when people engage
• Extrinsic motivation occurs
in activities without outside
when people take action suggestion or pressure.
based on tangible or
intangible rewards or other
outside influences. • Example, This motivation may
come from the desire for
• For example, teachers may
enjoyment or a feeling of
entice children with stickers obligation.
or promises of class parties.
 Emotions
Emotion is often defined as a complex state of feeling that results
in physical and psychological changes that influence thought
and behavior.
Strong emotions can cause you to take actions you might not
normally perform, or avoid situations that you generally enjoy.
Researchers, philosophers, and psychologists have proposed a
number of different theories to explain the how and why behind
human emotions.
Emotionality is associated with a range
of psychological phenomena including temperament, personality,
mood and Motivation.
According to author David G. Meyers, human emotion involves
"...physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious
experience."
Emotion is different from “feelings” because
feelings subjectively represent emotions,
which means that feelings are only private to
the person. Also, emotion is distinguished
from “mood” based on the period of time
that they are present; a mood lasts longer
than an emotion. Interchangeably used with
emotion, “affect” is the experience of
emotion, and is associated with how the
emotion is expressed (as seen on facial
expressions or hand gestures).
 Feelings
Emotion can be differentiated
from a number of similar are best understood as
constructs within the field a subjective representation of
of affective neuroscience. emotions, private to the
individual experiencing them.

Emotions

Moods Affect
are diffuse affective states that generally is an encompassing term, used to describe the
last for much longer durations than topics of emotion, feelings, and moods together,
emotions and are also usually less intense even though it is commonly used
interchangeably with emotion.
than emotions.
 Theories of Emotions
The major theories of motivation can be grouped like this:
The James-Lange Theory The Cannon-Bard Theory Schachter-Singer Theory
of Emotion of Emotion
• According to this theory, • This theory states that • This theory suggests
you see an external stimulus we feel emotions and that the physiological
that leads to a physiological
reaction. Your emotional experience arousal occurs first,
reaction is dependent upon physiological reactions and then the
how you interpret those such as sweating, individual must
physical reactions. trembling and muscle identify the reason
• EXAMPLE: You are walking tension behind this arousal in
down a dark alley late at simultaneously. More order to experience
night. You hear footsteps
specifically, it is and label it as an
behind you and you begin
to tremble, your heart suggested that emotion.
beats faster, and your emotions result when
breathing deepens. You the thalamus sends a
notice these physiological message to the brain
changes and interpret in response to a
them as your stimulus, resulting in a
body's preparation for a physiological reaction.
fearful situation. You then
experience fear.
 Emotions

James-Lange Theory

Cannon-Bard Theory

Schachter-Singer Theory
 Theories of Emotions

Lazarus Theory Facial Feedback Theory

Lazarus Theory states that a thought According to the facial feedback theory,
must come before any emotion or emotion is the experience of changes in our
physiological arousal. In other words, facial muscles. In other words, when we smile,
you must first think about your situation we then experience pleasure, or
happiness. When we frown, we then
before you can experience an emotion. experience sadness. it is the changes in our
EXAMPLE: You are walking down a dark facial muscles that cue our brains and provide
alley late at night. You hear footsteps the basis of our emotions. Just as there are an
behind you and you think it may be a unlimited number of muscle configurations in
mugger so you begin to tremble, your our face, so to are there a seemingly unlimited
heart beats faster, and your breathing number of emotions.
deepens and at the same time EXAMPLE: You are walking down a dark alley
late at night. You hear footsteps behind you and
experience fear. your eyes widen, your teeth clench and your
brain interprets these facial changes as the
expression of fear. Therefore you experience the
emotion of fear.
 Many psychologists believe that the link
between motivation and emotion emerged
from three reasons. First, the arousal of
emotion and motives of motivation both
activate or energize behaviour. Second,
emotions often go together with motives. The
common Latin root word of emotion and
Similarities motivation, “movere” (to move) seems to imply
the said reason. And third, it is typical for basic
emotions to possess motivational properties of
their own. For example, happiness motivates a
person to achieve better performance.
Motivation A noticeable similarity between emotion and
motivation is that they are both linked to energy
And or intensity instead of information or direction.
Another one is that while cognition seems to be
Emotions wrapped in “coldness”, emotion and motivation
are often associated to pressure and heat. Yet
another similarity is that both psychological
constructs rely on the relationship between an
individual and his environment.

Relationship Human beings tend to execute things that we hope

would lead to happiness, satisfaction and any other
positive emotion at some degree. With this said,
emotions could be viewed as a reward or punishment
for a specific motivated behaviour.