Motivation Concepts

Why do people explore the unknown? Research explores that the operands of curiosity and exploration are motivational drivers. Motivation can be defined as the arousal, direction and persistence of behavior. (Franken, 1994) Motivation is an internal state or condition that activates behavior giving direction towards one’s desire or want. The motivational drive is a basic or instinctive need associated in the effort of behavior directed towards a goal-oriented cause. Curiosity is central to motivation for exploratory behavior. Curiosity has been referred as a “passion for learning” and a motivational drive in approaching a characteristic form of behavior in exploring the unknown in acquiring new learning.

Motivation that encompasses the Drive Theory can be guided by key elements of a need and drive. The need is a physiological state of deprivation within one’s self and drive is the psychological state attributable to reaching a goal. A physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a drive) that motivates one to satisfy the need. Maslow (1943) developed the Human Needs Hierarchy Theory where he determined one’s goal is driven by the basic physiological need is that needs to be satisfied before one can work their way up in reaching a goal. The hierarchy involves satisfying a sense of safety (one of security and stability), satisfy a social need (a sense of belonging and acceptance), satisfy esteem needs (sense of achievement, competence, recognition, respect from others, and self-esteem), and satisfy self-actualization needs (sense of knowing you have reached one’s fullest potential).

The motivational concept in the Drive Theory is the desire for significant accomplishment surrounded by fantasies or emotions (stress) reflecting on one’s achievement concerns. Drive motivation centers around intrinsic and extrinsic desires which involve behavior for one’s own sake or a behavior seeking reward or avoid punishment. Rewards and punishment affect one’s drive motivation. Intrinsic behavior is an inner drive goal to do the best one can go achieve a result that satisfies a need. As I am attending an online educational program, the end result in getting a degree is a personal goal that may or may not enhance my workplace status. My decision to get a college degree is a goal that will be useful when or if I leave my present position. Extrinsic behavior towards my current employer as an employee is to give my best talents and job experience in being productive in maintaining job security and seeking pay increases when job performances are evaluated. Positive motivation from within one’s self and employer relationships encourages productivity and boosts morale.

Motivation is a pivotal concept in most theories of learning. It is closely related to arousal, attention, anxiety, and feedback/reinforcement. A person needs to be motivated enough to pay attention while learning and the motivation to learn can decrease by internal anxieties or stress. Receiving a reward or feedback for an action usually increases the likelihood that the action will be repeated. Weiner (1990) points out that behavioral theories tended to focus on extrinsic motivation (i.e., rewards) while cognitive theories deal with intrinsic motivation (i.e., goals).

Thoughts relative to the behavioral theory, motivation was strictly a function of primary drives such as hunger, sex, sleep, or comfort. According to Hull's drive reduction theory, learning reduces drives and therefore motivation is essential to learning. The degree of the learning achieved can be manipulated by the strength of the drive and its underlying motivation. In Tolman's theory of purposive behaviorism, primary drives create internal states (i.e., wants or needs) that serve as secondary drives and represent intrinsic motivation. Motivation serves to create intentions and goal-seeking. Relevant to learning is achievement motivation (e.g., Atkinson & Raynor, 1974; Weiner). Motivation to achieve is a function of the individual's desire for success, the expectancy of success, and the incentives provided that are perceived as highly relevant to their career goals. According to Rogers, all individuals have a drive to self-actualize and this motivates learning. Four components of motivation: arousing interest, creating relevance, developing an expectancy of success, and producing satisfaction through intrinsic/extrinsic rewards presents an instructional design model for motivation. (Keller 1983)

Workplace motivation can be defined as the influence that makes us do things to achieve organizational goals: this is a result of our individual needs being satisfied (or met) so that we are motivated to complete organizational tasks effectively. As these needs vary from person to person, an organization must be able to utilize different motivational tools to encourage their employees to put in the