Week 7 Motivation and Emotion PDF

NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Week 7 - Motivation and Emotion...

NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Week 7 - Motivation and Emotion At the end of this module, you are expected to: 1. Explain the different concepts in theories of motivation 2. Briefly discuss the topic of hunger and eating from a psychological perspective 3. Understand the connection of sexuality to motivation 4. Describe achievement and motivation 5. Explain the nature and theories of emotion Motivation and Emotion At this current moment can you still state the same reason why you choose to study Psychology? One of the most common replies is, “Because I wanted to study why humans behave the way they do.” Motivation theories address this question directly. Motivations are feelings or ideas that cause us to act toward a goal. Some motivations are obvious and conscious, but some are more subtle. This module will review the connections between physiology and motivation, general motivation theories, and specific examples of motivation in hunger and sex. Finally, we will review the psychological research and theories about emotion and explain the nature and theories of emotion. Theories of Motivation Instincts and Evolutionary Psychology If you have pets, you know that different animals are born with instincts, a complex behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species and is unlearned. For example, if you have fish, you did not teach your fish how to swim or to breathe using their gills; it was born with this instinct. Early in the twentieth century, as the influence of Charles Darwin’s evolutionary theory grew, it became fashionable to classify all sorts of behaviors as instincts. If people criticized themselves, it was because of their “self-abasement instinct.” Although instinct theory failed to explain human motives, the underlying assumption that genes predispose species-typical behavior remains as strong as ever. While psychologists debate whether humans are born with any instincts, they agree that our behavior is also motivated by other biological and psychological factors. Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 1  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Drive-reduction Theory When the original instinct theory of motivation collapsed, it was replaced by drive reduction theory—the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused state that drives the organism to reduce the need by, say, eating or drinking. A need is one of our requirements for survival, such as food, water, or shelter. A drive is our impulse to act in a way that satisfies this need. If, for example, you skip lunch, your body has a need for food that is not satisfied. This need creates a drive, hunger, and this drive causes you to order food delivery to satisfy the need. Our body seeks homeostasis, a tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state; the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level. When we are out of homeostasis, we have a need that creates a drive. Drives can be categorized in two ways: primary drives and secondary drives. Primary drives are biological needs, like thirst. Secondary drives are learned drives. For instance, we learn that resources like money can get us food and water to satisfy our primary drives. However, the drive reduction theory cannot explain all our motivations. Sometimes, we are motivated to perform behaviors that do not seem connected with any need or drive, primary or secondary. One example is skydiving; they are motivated to do a daring act because of the speed and excitement, and this explains the next theory. Arousal Theory It proposes a motivation for behaviors, such as curiosity-driven behaviors, that do not reduce physiological needs. This type of motivation aims not to eliminate arousal but to seek optimum levels of arousal. This arousal level can be measured by different physiological tests. Each of us has a different need for excitement or arousal, and we are motivated by activities that will help us achieve this level. People with high optimum arousal levels might be drawn to high-excitement behaviors, while the rest of us are satisfied with less exciting and less risky activities. In general, most of us perform best with an optimum level of arousal, although this varies with different activities. We might perform well at an easy task with a very high level of arousal, but the same high level of arousal would prevent us from performing well on a difficult task. Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 2  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Opponent Process Theory It states that when one emotion is experienced, the other is suppressed. For example, if you are frightened by a mean dog, the emotion of fear is expressed, and relief is suppressed. If the fear-causing stimulus continues to be present, after a while, the fear decreases, and the relief intensifies. For example, when skydivers jump from planes. Beginners experience extreme fear as they jump, which is replaced by great relief when they land. With repeated jumps, the fear decreases, and the post-jump pleasure increases. This process may explain a variety of thrill-seeking behaviors. It has also been proposed as a model of drug addiction. The drug initially produces pleasurable feelings, but then a negative emotional experience occurs. Eventually, the drug user takes drugs not for their pleasurable effects but to avoid withdrawal symptoms. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs proposes a pyramid of human needs, from basic needs such as hunger and thirst up to higher-level needs such as actualization and transcendence. Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 3  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Figure 1: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Maslow pointed out that not all needs are created equal. He described a hierarchy of needs that predicts which needs we will be motivated to satisfy first. Maslow predicted that we will act to satisfy biological needs like survival and safety. Then, we will act to satisfy our emotional needs like love and self-esteem. Finally, once the previous goals have been met, we will want to attain our life goals like satisfaction and self- actualization, a need to fulfill our unique potential as a person Hunger Motivation A vivid demonstration of the supremacy of physiological needs came from starvation experiences in World War II prison camps. David Mandel (1983), a Nazi concentration camp survivor, recalled how a starving “father and son would fight over a piece of bread. Like dogs.” One father, whose 20-year-old son stole his bread from under his pillow while he slept, went into a deep depression, asking over and over how his son could do such a thing. The next day, the father died. “Hunger does something to you that’s hard to describe,” Mandel explained. Figure 2: Concentration camp prisoners 1945 Physiological Basis of Hunger Hunger’s pangs correspond to the stomach’s contractions, but hunger also has other causes. Our brain also plays a role in the feeling of hunger. The hypothalamus monitors Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 4  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ and helps to control body chemistry (including the ratio of glucose and insulin) and makes us feel hungry when we need to eat. Electric stimulation of animals’ brains indicates that different parts of the Hypothalamus act in opposition to controlling hunger. When stimulated, the lateral hypothalamus (hunger center) causes the animal to eat. Destruction of this area destroys hunger, and the animal will starve to death unless forced to eat. Another part of the hypothalamus, the ventromedial hypothalamus (satiety center), causes the animal to stop eating when it is stimulated. If this area is destroyed, the animal will eat and gain more and more weight unless it is deprived of food. If the hypothalamus functions normally, these two areas oppose each other and signal impulses to eat and stop eating at appropriate times. Set-point theory describes how the hypothalamus might decide what impulse to send. This theory states that the hypothalamus wants to maintain a certain optimum body weight. When we drop below that weight, the hypothalamus tells us we should eat and lowers our metabolic rate—how quickly our body uses energy. The hypothalamus tells us to stop eating when that set point is reached and raises our metabolic rate to burn any excess food. However, not all researchers agree that we have a set point for weight. They might point to psychological factors and believe weight maintenance has more to do with learning and cognition than the hypothalamus. In addition, the brain monitors insulin (released by the liver) and glucose levels, and this balance also influences our perception of hunger. Psychology of Hunger Hunger also reflects learning, our memory of when we last ate, and our expectation of when we should eat again. Humans as a species prefer certain tastes (such as sweet and salty), but we satisfy those preferences with specific foods prescribed by our situation and our culture. Some taste preferences, such as avoiding new foods or foods that have made us ill, have survival value. Everyone responds to both types of cues but to greater or lesser extents. These and other factors in eating might be learned. The Garcia effect, in particular, can drastically affect what foods make us hungry. You can probably think of a particular food that brings back unpleasant memories of being sick. If you eat hot dogs and then happen to get nauseous, hot dogs will probably be unappetizing to you even if you know the hot dogs did not cause your sickness. The Garcia effect causes this and occurs whenever nausea is paired with either food or drink Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 5  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Figure 3: “Balut” a common Filipino street food Culture and background affect our food preferences. The foods we are raised with are most likely the foods we find most appetizing, although new preferences are acquired. Where I live in the Philippines, we do have “balut.” It is a developing bird embryo (usually a duck) that is boiled and eaten from the shell, commonly sold as street food, and often served with spicy vinegar or salt for seasoning. I am sure some of you (or almost all) find it unappetizing. We usually prefer foods our family, region, and culture prefer because those are the foods we learned to like. Eating Disorders Research into hunger motivations has at least one very important practical application—eating disorders. Our bodies are naturally disposed to maintain a normal weight, including stored energy reserves for times when food becomes unavailable. Yet, sometimes psychological influences overwhelm biological wisdom. Many researchers seek to apply what we know about hunger and eating to treat individuals with harmful eating patterns. Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 6  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Figure 4: Anorexia Nervosa, Many people with anorexia see themselves as overweight even though they are in fact underweight. Common Eating Disorder Anorexia nervosa Typically begins as a weight-loss diet. People with anorexia— usually adolescents and 3 out of 4 times females—drop significantly (typically 15 percent or more) below normal weight. Yet they feel fat, fear gaining weight, and remain obsessed with losing weight. About half of those with anorexia display a binge-purge-depression cycle. Bulimia nervosa May also be triggered by a weight-loss diet, broken by gorging on forbidden foods. Binge-purge eaters—mostly women in their late teens or early twenties. It is a cycle of repeating episodes, overeating is followed by compensatory purging (through vomiting or laxative use) or fasting or excessive exercise Obesity People with diagnosed obesity are severely overweight, often by over 100 pounds, and the excess weight threatens their health. Obese people typically have unhealthy eating habits rather than the food obsessions of the other two disorders. Some people may also be genetically predisposed to obesity. Obesity measured as body mass index (BMI) U.S. government guidelines encourage a BMI under 25. The World Health Organization and many countries define obesity as a BMI of 30 or more Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 7  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Figure 5: Iman Ahmad Abdulati has been obese since birth. Her current weight is at 500 kg. Many researchers are investigating the causes of eating disorders. Different cultures have drastically different rates of eating disorders, possibly due to the emphasis on body weight in the culture. Eating disorder rates are highest in the United States, possibly for this reason. Research also identifies a family history of eating disorders as a risk factor, indicating a potential genetic component. Researchers agree that eating disorders are influenced by a complex set of factors and are not merely a lack of willpower about food. Sexual Motivation Sexual motivations are vital for the continuation of any species. One of the primary tasks for most living organisms is reproduction. Since humans are one of the most complex living organisms, our sexual motivations are correspondingly complex. Like hunger, sex is motivated by both biological and psychological factors. Sexual Response Cycle In the 1960s, gynecologist-obstetrician William Masters and his collaborator Virginia Johnson (1966) made headlines by recording the physiological responses of volunteers who masturbated or had intercourse. Masters and Johnson monitored or filmed more than 10,000 sexual “cycles.” Their description of the sexual response cycle identified four stages, similar in men and women. Excitement phase The genital areas become engorged with blood, a woman’s vagina expands and secretes lubricant, and her breasts and nipples may enlarge, penis becomes erect, respiration and heart rate increase. Plateau phase Respiration and heart rate continue at an elevated level, genitals secrete fluids in preparation for coitus. Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 8  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Orgasm Rhythmic genital contractions that may help conception, respiration, and heart rate increase further, males ejaculate, often accompanied by a pleasurable euphoria. Resolution phase Respiration and heart rate return to normal resting states, men experience a refractory period—a time period that must elapse before another orgasm, women do not have a similar refractory period and can repeat the cycle immediately Sexual Orientation As attention and controversy about sexual orientation issues increase, so does research about homosexuality. Researchers (like Alfred Kinsey, who documented the variety of human sexual behaviors in the famous Kinsey Reports) have been able to dispel some common myths about what it means to be homosexual. Studies show that homosexuality is not related to traumatic childhood experiences, parenting styles, the quality of relationships with parents, masculinity or femininity, or whether heterosexual or homosexual parents raise us. Although some researchers believe environmental influences probably affect sexual orientation, these factors have not yet been identified. Researchers have identified possible biological influences, however. Some studies indicate that specific brain structures might differ in size in the brains of homosexuals when compared with the same structures in heterosexuals. Twin studies indicate a genetic influence on sexual orientation since a twin is much more likely to be gay if his or her identical twin is gay. Some researchers theorize that hormones in the womb might change brain structure and influence sexual orientation. Since 3 to 10 percent (estimates vary) of the population worldwide is homosexual, research in this area will certainly continue, and the causes of sexual orientations will become more clear. Social Motivation Our need to affiliate or belong—to feel connected and identified with others—had survival value for our ancestors’ chances, which may explain why humans in every society live in groups. Societies everywhere control behavior with the threat of ostracism—excluding or shunning others. It shows that our society and the people we surround us with also affect what motivates us. Achievement Motivation Achievement motivation can be defined as the need for success or attaining excellence. Individuals will satisfy their needs through different means and are driven to succeed for varying reasons, both internal and external. Also, it is one theory that tries to Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 9  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ explain the motivations behind these more complex behaviors. Achievement motivation examines our desires to master complex tasks and knowledge and to reach personal goals. Humans seem to be motivated to figure out our world and master skills, sometimes regardless of the benefits of the skills or knowledge. Studies in achievement motivation find that some people have high achievement motivation and consistently feel motivated to challenge themselves more than do other people. They always set the bar a little higher and seek greater challenges. Obviously, this varies from person to person and activity to activity. Not many people are motivated to achieve in every aspect of life (in fact, enough time probably is not available). However, studies that measure achievement motivation do indicate a higher-than-average achievement motivation in some people. Extrinsic/Intrinsic Motivation Another way to think about the social factors that influence motivation is by dividing them into extrinsic and intrinsic motivations. Extrinsic motivators are rewards that we get for accomplishments from outside ourselves (for example, grades, salary, and so on). Intrinsic motivators are rewards we get internally, such as enjoyment or satisfaction. Knowing what type of motivation an individual responds best can give managers and other leaders insight into what strategies will be most effective. Psychologists working with people managing work groups (in government, business, or other areas) might test or evaluate group members for intrinsic or extrinsic motivation and try to alter group policies accordingly. Studies show that intrinsic motivation is most effective if we want an advantageous behavior to continue. Extrinsic motivations are very effective for a short period of time. Inevitably, the extrinsic motivations end, and so will the desired behavior unless some intrinsic motivation continues to motivate the behavior. Management Theory Some research into how managers behave is closely related to extrinsic/intrinsic motivation. Studies of management styles show two basic attitudes that affect how managers do their jobs: Theory X Managers believe that employees will work only if rewarded with benefits or threatened with punishment. Theory Y Managers believe that employees are internally motivated to do good work and policies should encourage this internal motive. Cross-cultural studies show the benefits of moving from a theory X attitude about employees to a theory Y attitude. Some companies hire consultants from other countries to teach their managers how to promote intrinsic motivation in employees. Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 10  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Theories about Emotion Emotions are psychological responses of the whole organism involving an interplay among (1) physiological arousal, (2) expressive behaviors, and (3) conscious experience. Our emotional state is closely related to our motivation. In fact, imagining one without the other is difficult. Emotion influences motivation, and motivation influences emotion. Psychologists investigate emotional states and create theories that try to explain our emotional experiences. Figure 6: Components of an Emotion Three theories support different combinations of these responses. The James-Lange theory maintains that our emotions follow our body’s response to emotion-inducing stimuli. The Cannon-Bard theory proposes that our body responds to emotion while we experience the emotion (one does not cause the other). The two-factor theory holds that our emotions have two ingredients: physical arousal and a cognitive label. James-Lange versus Cannon-Bard William James and Carl Lange put forth one of the earliest theories about emotion. James-Lange theory the theory that our experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli. They theorized that we feel emotion because of biological changes caused by stress. So when the big bad wolf jumps out of the woods, Little Red Riding Hood’s heart races and this physiological change causes her to feel afraid. Walter Cannon and Philip Bard doubted this order of events. Cannon-Bard theory the theory that an emotion-arousing stimulus simultaneously triggers (1) physiological responses and (2) the subjective experience of emotion. Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 11  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ They demonstrated that similar physiological changes correspond with drastically different emotional states. When Little Red Riding Hood’s heart races, how does she know if she feels afraid, in love, embarrassed, or merely joyful? They theorized that the biological change and the cognitive awareness of the emotional state occur simultaneously. Cannon thought the thalamus is responsible for both the biological change and the cognitive awareness of emotions. Cannon believed that when the thalamus receives information about our environment, it sends signals simultaneously to our cortex and to our autonomic nervous system, creating the awareness of emotion and physiological change at the same time. Recent research shows that Cannon overestimated the role of the thalamus in this process. Many other brain structures, such as the amygdala, are also involved. Figure 7: Theories of emotion Two-Factor Theory Stanley Schachter’s two-factor theory explains emotional experiences more completely than the James-Lange or Cannon-Bard theories do. Two-factor theory, the Schachter-Singer theory that to experience emotion, one must (1) be physically aroused and (2) cognitively label the arousal. Schachter pointed out that both our physical responses and our cognitive labels (our mental interpretations) combine to cause any particular emotional response. So, to Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 12  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ continue the previous example, Little Red Riding Hood’s emotional response depends on both her heart racing and her cognitive label of the event as being scary. Schachter showed that already physiologically aroused people experience more intense emotions than unaroused people when both groups are exposed to the same stimuli. For example, if your heart rate is already elevated after a quick jog, you will report being more frightened by a sudden surprise than you would if you got a surprise in a resting state. Two-factor theory demonstrates that emotion depends on the interaction between two factors, biology and cognition References and Supplementary Materials Books and Journals 1. Feist, G., & Rosenberg, E. Psychology: Perspectives and Connections. McGraw-Hill, ISBN-10: 0077861876 2. Myers, David G, C. Nathan DeWall. Psychology Twelfth Edition. New York: Worth Publishers Online Supplementary Reading Materials 1. Motivation: The Scientific Guide on How to Get and Stay Motivated: https://jamesclear.com/motivation 2. Emotions and Types of Emotional Responses: https://www.verywellmind.com/what-are-emotions-2795178 3. Theories of Emotion: https://www.iep.utm.edu/emotion/ 4. Here Are The 27 Different Human Emotions, According To A Study https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2017/09/09/here-are-the-27-different- human-emotions-according-to-a-study/#566f5c711335 Online Instructional Videos 1. The Power of Motivation: Crash Course Psychology #17: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hdSLiHaJz8 2. Feeling All the Feels: Crash Course Psychology #25 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAMbkJk6gnE 3. A Brief History of Fat, and Why We Hate It https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vinqph-g5QI 4. Why you feel what you feel | Alan Watkins | TEDxOxford https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-rRgpPbR5w Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 13  NU sikoloEASTa: Psychology Society NU East Ortigas _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Emotional Mastery: The Gifted Wisdom of Unpleasant Feelings | Dr Joan Rosenberg | TEDxSantaBarbara https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKy19WzkPxE 6. We Become What We Think About Most Of The Time - Positive Thinking Motivation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4A9DhqQ8bs Week 7_Motivation and Emotion 14