Chapter 8 Motivation And Emotion

Introduction

Motivation and emotion are two fundamental psychological concepts that explain what drives human behaviour and the feelings associated with it. Motivation explains the "why" behind our actions – what initiates, directs, and sustains goal-oriented behaviour. Emotion describes the complex patterns of feelings, physiological arousal, and cognitive interpretation we experience in response to stimuli or situations.

Motives, like the drive to excel academically, achieve physical challenges, or show affection, are underlying forces that make behaviour persistent and goal-directed. Emotions, like happiness, sadness, anger, or jealousy, are feelings that accompany these drives and actions.

This chapter introduces the basic concepts of motivation and emotion. We will explore the nature of human motivation, different types of motives (biological and psychosocial), and prominent theories like Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. We will also examine the nature of emotions, how they are expressed (verbally and non-verbally), the influence of culture on emotional expression and interpretation, and practical techniques for managing emotions, particularly negative ones like anger and anxiety, and enhancing positive emotions.

Nature Of Motivation

Motivation is derived from the Latin word ‘movere’, meaning to move. It is a concept used to explain what energises and directs behaviour. Motives are underlying states that drive goal-seeking behaviour, which tends to persist until the goal is achieved. Motives help predict behaviour in various situations (e.g., high need for achievement predicts hard work in many areas). Motivation is considered a key determinant of behaviour, encompassing instincts, drives, needs, goals, and incentives.

The Motivational Cycle

Psychologists often use the concept of 'need' to explain motivation. A need is a lack or deficit of something necessary. A need creates a state of tension or arousal called a drive. The drive energises the organism to engage in random activity. When this activity leads to achieving a goal, the drive is reduced, the tension is relieved, and the organism returns to a balanced state. This sequence forms the motivational cycle:

(A diagram showing a cyclical process: Need $\rightarrow$ Drive $\rightarrow$ Arousal $\rightarrow$ Goal-directed behaviour $\rightarrow$ Achievement $\rightarrow$ Reduction of arousal $\rightarrow$ Need.)

Types Of Motives

Motives are broadly classified into two main types:

(A diagram categorising motives into two main branches: Biological Motives and Psychosocial Motives.)

Biological Motives

Also called physiological motives, these are primarily driven by the body's internal physiological mechanisms. Early explanations of motivation focused on instincts (innate, biologically determined behaviour patterns) and drives (tension from needs). Hunger, thirst, and sex are considered basic biological motives essential for survival (of the individual or species).

Hunger

A powerful biological motive that drives the desire to obtain and consume food. Hunger is triggered by complex internal and external factors: stomach contractions (empty stomach), low blood glucose, low protein/fat levels, nerve impulses from the liver responding to low fuel, and external cues like food aroma, taste, or appearance. All these factors interact to regulate food intake via a complex feeding-satiety system in the body (hypothalamus, liver, etc.) and environmental cues.

Thirst

Triggered by deprivation of water. Dryness of mouth/throat is a sensation of thirst, but the primary motivation comes from body conditions: loss of water from cells and reduced blood volume. Cell dehydration is detected by osmoreceptors in the hypothalamus, generating nerve impulses that trigger the thirst drive. Drinking water is needed to rehydrate tissues, not just wet the mouth.

Sex

A strong drive influencing human behaviour, but unlike hunger/thirst, sexual activity is not essential for individual survival, homeostasis isn't its goal, and the drive develops with age. While biologically regulated, especially in lower animals, in humans, sex drive is also significantly influenced by psychosocial factors, making it difficult to classify purely as biological.

Psychosocial Motives

These motives are primarily learned or acquired through interaction with the social environment (family, peers, etc.). They are complex forms of motivation resulting from individual-social environment interaction.

Need For Affiliation

The desire for company, friendship, and maintaining relationships with others. Humans need social contact and often form groups based on similarities or liking. The need for affiliation is aroused by feelings of threat, helplessness, or happiness. People high in this need seek company and friendly relations.

Need For Power

The desire to influence, control, persuade, lead, or charm others, and enhance one's reputation. David McClelland described four ways power motive is expressed: gaining power from external sources (sports stars, popular figures), feeling power from within (bodybuilding, self-mastery), individual impact on others (arguing, competing), and impact through organisations (political leaders using party to influence). The dominant form can change with age and experience.

Need For Achievement

Also called n-Ach, this is the desire to meet standards of excellence, compete with others, and strive for success (e.g., students seeking good grades). High achievement motivation energises and directs behaviour, influencing perception of situations. Learned during social development (from parents, role models, culture). High n-Ach individuals prefer moderately difficult tasks, seek performance feedback, and adjust goals to challenges.

Curiosity And Exploration

Motivation to engage in activities without a clear external goal, deriving pleasure from the activity itself (e.g., seeking novel experiences, gaining information). Curiosity drives exploration of the environment, linked to the need for sensory stimulation. Dominant in infants/children, who gain satisfaction from exploring. Boredom with repetition also fuels the desire for novelty and exploration.

Maslow’s Hierarchy Of Needs

Abraham H. Maslow proposed a popular hierarchical arrangement of human needs, often depicted as a pyramid (Theory of Self-actualisation). Lower-level needs must be met before higher-level needs become primary motivators.

(A pyramid divided into five levels, with the most basic needs at the bottom and progressively higher needs towards the top.)

1. Physiological Needs: Basic biological requirements for survival (hunger, thirst, etc.). Located at the base of the pyramid.
2. Safety Needs: Need to be free from physical and psychological danger and threat; seeking security and stability.
3. Belongingness Needs: Need for love, affection, acceptance, belonging to a group, seeking out other people.
4. Esteem Needs: Need to develop a sense of self-worth, achieve competence, gain recognition and respect from others.
5. Self-actualisation Needs: The highest level need. The motive towards the fullest development of one's potential, becoming self-aware, creative, spontaneous, open to novelty, challenges, with a sense of humour and deep relationships. Few people reach this level.

Lower needs dominate until satisfied, after which higher needs become prominent. However, exceptions occur where individuals prioritise higher needs (e.g., safety of others) over lower ones (e.g., personal safety), seemingly contradicting the strict hierarchy.

Nature Of Emotions

Emotions are complex experiences like joy, sorrow, anger, fear, etc., felt routinely. They are often used interchangeably with 'feeling' (pleasure/pain dimension) and 'mood' (long-duration, low-intensity affective state), but emotion is a broader concept.

Emotions are a complex pattern of arousal (physiological activation), subjective feeling (personal experience), and cognitive interpretation (assigning meaning to the experience). They involve internal physiological and psychological reactions.

Attempts to identify basic emotions suggest at least six universally recognised ones: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise. Izard proposed ten basic emotions. Plutchik identified eight basic emotions in four opposite pairs (joy-sadness, acceptance-disgust, fear-anger, surprise-anticipation), with other emotions being mixtures.

Emotions vary in intensity and quality. Subjective factors (gender, personality) and context influence emotional experience. Research suggests women experience most emotions (except anger) more intensely than men, while men are more prone to high-intensity anger, potentially linked to societal gender roles (competitiveness vs. affiliation/caring).

Expression Of Emotions

Emotions are internal but inferred from observable behaviour. They are expressed through verbal and non-verbal channels, acting as communication channels to show one's feelings and understand others'.

Culture And Emotional Expression

Verbal communication includes spoken words and paralanguage (non-verbal vocal features like pitch, loudness, temporal characteristics). Non-verbal channels include facial expression, kinetic behaviours (gestures, posture, body movement), and proximal behaviours (physical distance). Facial expression is the most common channel, easily conveying intensity and pleasantness/unpleasantness.

Darwin suggested facial expressions for basic emotions are inborn and universal. Bodily movements (gestures, postures) also communicate emotions (e.g., in Indian classical dances, movements convey emotions). Cultural differences exist in gaze behaviour (e.g., direct gaze in Latin Americans/Southern Europeans vs. peripheral gaze in Asians like Indians/Pakistanis).

Culture And Emotional Labeling

While some emotions might be universally expressed/understood, their labels and extent of elaboration vary culturally. Languages differ in the number of words for emotions (e.g., Tahitian having many labels for anger). Ancient Chinese literature cites seven emotions; ancient Indian literature identifies eight, which overlap with, but also differ from, Western classifications of basic emotions like happiness, sadness, fear, anger, disgust, surprise, contempt, shame, and guilt.

Managing Negative Emotions

Emotions are integral to life. Effective emotion management is crucial for social functioning and well-being. Negative emotions like fear, anger, disgust are adaptive, preparing us for threats, but excessive/inappropriate use can harm health (immune system). Managing negative emotions promotes positive outcomes.

Tips for emotion management:

• Self-monitoring: Regularly evaluating accomplishments, emotional/physical states to build self-faith and enhance wellness.
• Self-modeling: Using best past performances as inspiration.
• Enhance self-awareness: Be aware of your own emotions, understand their causes ("how" and "why").
• Appraise situation objectively: Emotions are triggered by appraisal. If an event is not perceived as disturbing, stress is reduced. Control over appraisal allows choice in emotional response.
• Perceptual reorganisation/cognitive restructuring: View events differently, see other perspectives, restructure thoughts to eliminate negative feelings and enhance positive ones.
• Be creative: Develop interests/hobbies that bring pleasure.
• Develop good relationships: Surround yourself with positive people.
• Have empathy: Understand others' feelings, nurture meaningful relationships, provide mutual support.
• Participate in community service: Helping others can provide perspective on personal difficulties and enhance self-understanding.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Box 8.1)

A psychological condition that can develop after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event (natural or man-made disaster) that involves actual or threatened death or injury. PTSD is characterised by re-experiencing the trauma through flashbacks, nightmares, or intrusive thoughts. It leads to emotional distress, difficulty coping, maladaptive behaviours (like depression), and autonomic arousal, significantly disrupting the person's ability to function.

Management Of Examination Anxiety (Box 8.2)

Examination anxiety is common, stemming from evaluation stress. A certain level of anxiety motivates, but high levels impede performance. Anxious individuals are physiologically/emotionally aroused, hindering optimal performance. Coping involves two strategies:

• Monitoring: Taking active steps to deal with the situation. Strategies: Prepare well in advance, familiarise with exam pattern, have rehearsals (mock exams, mental visualisation of success), stress inoculation (exposure to simulated stress), positive thinking (faith in self, focusing on strengths), seeking support from others.
• Blunting: Avoiding the stressful situation (less feasible in exams). Useful techniques: Relaxation (calming nerves, reframing thoughts through deep breathing, muscle relaxation, focused attention), Exercise (channelising excess energy from sympathetic activation, improving concentration).

Managing Your Anger

Anger is a negative emotion stemming from frustrated motives. It is a result of thinking and is controllable by thoughts, not a reflex or uncontrollable force caused by others. Key points in anger management:

• Recognise thought power; you control your anger.
• Avoid negative self-talk or magnifying negative feelings.
• Don't attribute negative intentions to others without evidence.
• Resist irrational beliefs about people/events.
• Find constructive ways to express anger, control its intensity/duration.
• Focus inward for control, acknowledge personal choice in expressing anger.
• Be patient; changing a habit takes time/effort.

Enhancing Positive Emotions

Emotions serve an adaptive purpose for survival and well-being. Negative emotions trigger protective action, while positive emotions like hope, joy, optimism, contentment, and gratitude energise and enhance emotional well-being. Positive affect broadens our scope of thought and action, leading to more flexible thinking, problem-solving, long-term planning, and relationship formation.

Ways to enhance positive emotions:

• Cultivate optimism, hopefulness, happiness, and positive self-regard.
• Find positive meaning in difficult situations.
• Nurture quality connections and supportive relationships with others.
• Engage in work/activities and gain mastery.
• Develop faith, purpose, and hope in life.
• Interpret daily events positively.

Key Terms

Anxiety, Arousal, Basic emotions, Biological needs (hunger, thirst, sex), Esteem needs, Examination anxiety, Expression of emotions, Hierarchy of needs, Motivation, Motives, Need, Power motive, Psychosocial motives, Self-actualisation, Self-esteem

Summary

Motivation explains goal-directed behaviour resulting from drives. It involves needs creating drives, leading to arousal, goal-directed behaviour, achievement, and arousal reduction.

Motive types: Biological (innate, physiological, e.g., hunger, thirst, sex) and Psychosocial (learned from social interaction, e.g., affiliation, achievement, power, curiosity, exploration). Both are interdependent.

Maslow's Hierarchy: Needs arranged pyramidally from basic physiological to safety, belongingness, esteem, and self-actualisation (highest potential development). Lower needs dominate until satisfied.

Emotion: Complex arousal pattern, subjective feeling, cognitive interpretation. Basic emotions (joy, anger, fear, sadness, surprise, disgust) are universal. Intensity/quality varies. Gender/personality influence experience.

Emotion expression: Through verbal/non-verbal channels (facial expression, body movement, paralanguage, proximal behaviour). Facial expressions for basic emotions are considered inborn/universal. Culture influences expression/interpretation/labeling (varying number of terms for emotions).

Emotion management: Crucial for well-being. Manage negative emotions (anger, anxiety) via self-awareness, objective appraisal, cognitive restructuring, relaxation, exercise. Enhance positive emotions (hope, joy) via optimism, positive meaning, relationships, mastery, life purpose.

PTSD: Emotional disturbance after trauma. Examination anxiety: evaluation stress managed by preparation (monitoring) and relaxation/exercise (blunting).

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