Notes on Motivation

1. According to Freud, aggression and sex are the two drives that motivate human behaviour.
2. Psychodynamic theorists now emphasise another two motives; the need for relatedness to others and the need for self-esteem. They have also moved away from using the concept of 'drives' to 'wishes and fears'.
3. Implicit motives can be measured using the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), where explicit motives are more reliably measured through self-reports.
4. According to the behavioural perspective a primary drive is an innate or biological drive where a secondary drive is learned.
5. The conditions necessary for maximum job performance according to goal-setting theory are:
   (a). Experience a discrepancy between what she has and wants;
   (b). Define specific goals rather than general ones;
   (c). Receive continuing feedback that allows her to gauge her progress towards the goal;
   (d). Believe she has the ability to attain the goal;
   (e). Set a high enough goal to remain motivated; and
   (f). Have a high degree of commitment to the goal.
6. Three innate needs suggested by self-determination theory are competence, autonomy and relatedness to others. Self-determination theory view's rewards as a possible hinderance on the intrinsic value of that activity. When these innate needs are met without offering an external reward, the intrinsic value increases.
7. Maslow's five categories of needs starting from the lowest needs are physiological, safety, love or belongingness, esteem and self-actualisation.
8. The three levels of needs that form the basis of ERG theory are; existence, relatedness and growth.
9. The theory of inclusive fitness accounts for the motivation to care for close relatives as a need to protect the reproduction of genetically related individuals.
10. Motivation can be shaped by culture as emphasis on things such as material objects and wealth may be praised in some societies but looked down on by others.
11. The two phases of metabolism are absorptive; ingesting food and fasting; not eating.