Motivation is very important; man is an active creature by his nature. He is always engaged in some work and continues to do some kind of behavior. He does not do any work or behavior without any purpose. And the purpose of his work is to make the fulfillment of some special goal. For example, one student studies with great zeal and intensity while the other is detached from the study. What is the cause of it? This type of question arises: why do we take food? Why do we earn money?
Why do we take education? It can be found in the answer to these questions that there are some motives for the action and behavior of any person, which motivate him to take action and behave in different situations. Krech and Crutchfield have said clearly, “The question of motivation is the question of why.” In fact, needs, drivers, incentives, and motives are the main sources of motivation. Hilgard has written, “The need gives birth to the driver; the driver is the condition of developed intensity, which progresses toward the action and starting behavior. Stimulus is something related to external environment, which satisfies the needs and, in this way, diminish the drive by action.’’ The motivator can be understood in the same words as needs, desires, intensity, natural situation, decisive qualities, habits, interests, and stable incentive.
Meaning of Motivation
The word “motivation” originated from the Latin word “motum.” According to the general and verbal meaning of motivation, move, motor, and motion, we can call any stimulus a motivation, which helps a person for reacting and behavior. This motivation is an internal power, which internally motivates a person for doing any action. This type of motivation can be called the driving power of physical instrument. In the psychological context, the meaning of motivation is by the internal stimulus, as a consequence of which we do any action and behavior.
Psychologists have not concluded external stimulus under motivation. For example, hunger is such an internal stimulus, according to which we can be inspired to have the food, so hunger can be called motivation. A person can be inspired to have the food after seeing the plate of food. Here the plate is an external stimulus, but the eating process did not get inspired. A man will not take the food until he gets internal motivation, so we can say internal stimulus, which motivates a man for doing any activity, is called motivation.
Definitions of Motivation
- “Achievement = Ability + Motivation. Achievement is obtained by ability and motivation. The ability of a person is developed by getting motivation. This type of ability is possible by the achievement of motivation.” – Woodworth
- “Motivation may be defined more formally as a psychological or internal process, initiated by some need, which leads to an activity that will satisfy that need.” – Lowell
- “Motivation is the process of arousing, sustaining, and regulating activities.” – Good
- “Motivation is a process in which a learner’s internal energies or needs are directed towards various goals and objects in his environment.” – Blare, Johns and Simpson
- “Motivation is the process of arousing action, sustaining the activities in the progress, and regulating the pattern of activity.” – P.T Young
- “Motivation is the superhighway to learning.” – Skinner after analysing the above definitions related to motivation the following things are clarified—
Motive—Meaning
In the action and behavior of a human being, inborn, natural, and acquired instincts are hidden. These instincts inspire behavior, so psychologists have called it motive. So we can say that the motivation instinct lies in the root of human behavior, which inspires a man to do some activities. Motivation is a mental set, and motive is a factor that motivates a man to do some special action. So, we can say that motivation tells about the situation, and motives are due to its reason.
Definitions of motive
- “A motive may now be defined as a tendency to activity initiated by a drive and
- concluded by an adjustment.’’ – Shaffer and others
- “Motives take a variety of forms and are designated by many different terms, such as needs, desires, tensions, sets determining tendencies, attitudes, interests, persisting stimuli, and so on.” – Gates & Others
- “A motive is a state or set of the individual that disposes him for certain behavior and seeking certain goals.” – Woodworth
- “Motives are physiological and psychological within the organism that dispose it to act in certain ways.” – MacDougal
- “A motive is any particular internal factor or condition that tends to initiate and to sustain activity.” – Gilford
Classification of Motives
- Innate Motives
- Acquired Motives
- Natural Motives
- Artificial Motives
- Biological motives
- Psychological motives
- Social motives
Innate Motive—These motives are found in the person from birth. These are also called biological or physiological motives. For example, hunger, thirst, work, sleep, rest, etc.
Acquired Motive—These are the motives that individuals earn or learn through their efforts. Like interest, habit, community, etc.
Psychological Motives—These motives arise due to psychological conditions. For example, anger, fear, love, sadness, joy, etc.
Social Motives—These motives arise due to social ideals, situations, relationships, etc., and have a great influence on the behavior of the person. Such as self-protection, self-performance, curiosity, creativity, etc. Natural Motives—These motives are found in a person by nature itself. For example, sports, imitation, suggestion, prestige, happiness, etc.
Artificial Motives—These motives act as a complement to the natural motivators and control and encourage the action or behavior of the person. Such as punishment, praise, reward, cooperation, motivation of individual and group work etc.
Types of Motivation
- Positive or Intrinsic motivation
- Negative or Extrinsic motivation
Positive or intrinsic motivation—This is when motivation comes from “internal” factors to meet personal needs. We do things because we enjoy them, not because we have to. “Intrinsic” means internal or inside of yourself; when you are intrinsically motivated, you enjoy an interest, a course of study, or skill development solely for the fulfillment of education and having fun. Examples include exploring opportunities for personal development for the satisfaction of being competent in a task or setting the standards to become a role model or mentor. Whatever you take on, you do it for personal accomplishment and gratification.
Negative or extrinsic motivation—This is when motivation comes from “external” factors that are given or controlled by others. Salary or praise are good examples. This type of motivation is everywhere and frequently used within society. When you are motivated to perform, achieve, learn, or do something based on a highly considered outcome, rather than for the fun, development, or personal fulfillment, you are being extrinsically motivated.
Characteristics of Motivation
- Motivation is both a process and an outcome.
- Motivation is need-based.
- Motivation keeps a person active till the objective is achieved.
- The factors that generate motivation are called motives in psychological language.
- Motivation can be broadly divided into two categories—intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
- Motivation is a continuous process.
- Motivation is a planned process.
- Motivation may be positive or negative.
- Most of the human needs are of a recurring nature; some of the needs of individuals shall always be found to be unfulfilled. Thus, the motivational process can be enforced on a continuous basis.
- Motivation aims for best attainment of common objectives through best utilization of resources. Motivated employees make the best utilization of all resources—materials, machines, technology, and other work facilities—and put in their best effort towards the attainment of common objectives of the enterprise.
- Motivation is an internal feeling—it is a psychological phenomenon that generates within an individual.
Elements of Motivation
we can say on the basis of above definitions that the initiation of motivation is by some need and end after the attainment of any goal. Motivation is an extended word. There are the three elements of motivation, which are following—
- Need
- Drive
- Incentive
Need- There are some fundamental needs for sustaining the life of every creature, And it is necessary to fulfil them. As it is necessary to fulfil the needs of water, air, food, sleeping. If these physical needs are not met, tension and imbalance arouse in the body, as a consequence of which he becomes activated. For example, being hungry, activeness is sustained in a man until he gets his food. After getting the food his need is completed. And his tension and his activeness come to an end.
According Boring and Langefield – “A need is tension within an organism which tends to organize the field or organism with respect to certain incentives of goals and incite activity directed toward their attainment.’’ Therefore, the psychologists have also said need, such as a condition, which is felt in the reduction and absence of any thing. Man is always active to complete this reduction. As for the fulfilment of consumption of eating material he tries to get the food, he searches for water for the fulfilment of water, here the reduction of water and eating material is the needs of water and food.
Drive- The stage of tension that arises due to the needs of creature is called drive. Thus, need is generated by the drive- As-thirst-drive, by the need of water and hunger-drive originated, by the need of food. The feeling of hunger and thirst is an internal stimulus. This generates tension in the man. A man does action for having food and quenching the thirst. Thus, to inspire for doing action is the chief characteristics of drive. According to
Deshiyal- “Drive is original source of energy that activates the organism.’’
Sheffar and others- “A drive is a strong, persistent, stimulus that demands an adjusting response.’’ Incentive- Incentive is a thing of external environment, which satisfies the drives after fulfilling the need. For example- hunger is a drive, which is satisfied by the food. Therefore, food is an incentive for ‘hunger- drive’. According to Hillgard- “In general, an appropriate incentive is one that can reduce the intensity of a drive.’’ The internal stage of a man is indicated by the need and drive, while incentive is presented in the external environment. In the words of Boring and Lang field, “An incentive may be defined as an object, a situation or an activity which excites, maintains and directs behaviour.’’
Relation among Need, Drive and Incentive
There is a close relationship in these parts of motivation. Hillgard has cleared the need drive incentive formula. How does this formula work, has been clarified very well after the understanding of the meaning of these thrice. Hillgard has written about the close relationship of these three. “Need gives rise to drive state which is a drive of heightened tension leading to activity and preparatory behaviour and the incentive in the external environment that satisfies the need and thus reduce the drive through consummators activity.’’
Theories of Motivation
Psychologists have given many theories of motivation, which describe the importance and process of motivation. Out of which two theories are as follows-
- Maslow’s theory of hierarchy of needs
- Incentive Theory
Maslow’s theory of hierarchy of needs
The theory of hierarchy of needs was propounded by Abraham Maslow in 1943. Maslow’s theory is based on the premise that human beings are motivated by their needs and that needs can be arranged hierarchically. We all need different things. For example, the need for food or the need for security, etc., and these needs influence our choices and behaviour. This idea also underlies some of the principles of motivation and Needs
Maslow’s theory define motivation as the process of satisfying certain needs that are required for long-term development. According to Maslow, a need is a relatively lasting condition or feeling that requires relief or satisfaction, and it tends to influence action over the long term. According to Maslow, some needs, such as hunger, thirst, may reduce when satisfied, while other needs such as curiosity, a feeling of accumulation of money etc., may not.
Maslow’s Hierarchy Maslow’s theory is based on a simple premise, human beings have needs that are hierarchically ranked. There are some needs that are basic to all human beings, and in their absence, nothing else matters. We are ruled by these needs until they are satisfied. After we satisfy our basic needs, they no longer serve as motivators and we can begin to satisfy higher-order needs. Maslow organized human needs into a pyramid that includes (from lowest-level to highest- level) physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, and self-actualization needs. According to Maslow, one must satisfy lower-level needs before addressing needs that occur higher in the pyramid. For example, if someone is starving, it is quite unlikely that he will spend a lot of time, or any time at all, wondering whether other people think he is good person. Instead, all of his energies are geared toward finding something to eat.
Physiological Needs
Maslow placed physiological needs at the lowest level in his pyramid of needs. Which he called basic necessities for any human being. Such as the needs of air, food and water. For example, when you are very hungry, all your behaviour and actions are driven by the need to find food. Once you have eaten, the quest for food stops, and the need for food no longer motivates you
Safety needs
once physiological needs are satisfied, people tend to become concerned about safety needs. Are they safe from danger, pain, or an uncertain future? At this stage they will be motivated to direct their behaviour toward obtaining shelter and protection in order to satisfy this need.
Love/Belonging needs
once safety needs have been met, social needs for love/belonging become important. This can include the need to bond with other human beings, the need to be loved, and the need to form lasting attachments. Having no attachments can negatively affect health and well-being; as a result, people are motivated to find friends and romantic partners.
Esteem needs
once love and belonging needs have been satisfied, esteem needs become more salient. Esteem needs refer to the desire to be respected by one’s peers, to feel important, and to be appreciated. People will often look for ways to achieve a sense of mastery, and they may seek validation and praise from others in order to fulfil these needs.
Self-Actualization
At the highest level of the hierarchy, attention shifts to the need for self-actualization, which is a need that essentially equates to achieving one’s full potential. This can be seen in acquiring new skills, taking on new challenges, and behaving in a way that will help you to achieve your life goals. According to Maslow and other humanistic theorists, self-actualization reflects the humanistic emphasis on positive aspects of human nature. Maslow suggested that this is an ongoing, life-long process and that only a small percentage of people actually achieve a self-actualized state.
Incentive Theory
This theory was propounded by Boles and Kaufman. According to this theory, a person does any action or responses by being influenced by the object, situation or action located in his environment. According to Boles and Kaufman, all these elements present in the environment are called incentives. According to Boles and Kaufman, there are two types of incentives.
- Positive Incentive
- Negative Incentive
positive Incentive are those incentives which help a person to move forward towards the goal are called positive incentives. Such as food, water, praise or rewards etc.
Negative incentive are those incentives which prevent a person from moving forward towards the goal are called negative incentives. Such as punishment, condemnation, dissatisfaction etc.
Technique or methods of enhancing motivation
➢ Study of interest
➢ Development of healthy competition
➢ Clear and attractive goal
➢ Incentive
➢ Praise
➢ Group work
➢ Prize
➢ Punishment
➢ Opportunity to self- expression
➢ Knowledge of result
➢ Opportunities to participate in social work
➢ Use of appropriate teaching methods
➢ Behaviour of teachers
➢ Class environment