2. Motivation
Instinct
Drive-Reduction Theory (Hull)
the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused
tension state (a drive) that motivates an organism to
satisfy the need
Drive-reducing
behaviors
(eating, drinking)
Need
(e.g., for
food, water)
Drive
(hunger, thirst)
4. Growth Needs, Social Motives
& the Stimulus Drive
Stimulus Drive:
Reflects need for
information, exploration,
manipulation, and
sensory input
Social Motives:
Acquired by
growing up in a
particular society
or culture
(1) Achievement Motivation
(2) Need for Power
6. Types of Motivation
• Intrinsic Motivation: Motivation coming from
within, not from external rewards; based on
personal enjoyment of a task
• Extrinsic Motivation: Based on obvious
external rewards, obligations, or similar
factors
9. Motivation to Learn
• Human participants in a study are intrinsically
motivated to please the experimenter:
– Prove their proficiency at the task
– Maintain attention and ‘interest’
• Motivation effects
– amount of time devoted to the material
– degree of attention devoted to the material
10. Two Dimensions of Emotion
Positive
valence
Negative
valence
High
arousal
Low
arousal
pleasant
relaxation joy
sadness
fear
anger
11. Arousal and Performance
Performance
peaks at lower
levels of
arousal for
difficult tasks,
and at higher
levels for easy
or well-learned
tasks
12. Motivation to Learn in School
• Productive involvement
– State motivation
– Trait motivation
– Thoughtful learners
13. On TARGETT for Learning
• Task motivation
• Autonomy
• Rewards
• Grouping
• Evaluation & feedback
• Time for learning
• Teacher expectations
14. Tasks for Learning
• Task operations: risk & ambiguity
• Task value
– Attainment value
– Intrinsic or interest value
– Utility value
• Authentic tasks
• Problem-based learning
15. Supporting Autonomy and
Recognizing Accomplishments
• Supporting student choices
– Bounded choices
– Feedback
• Recognizing accomplishment
– Authentic praise
– Personal improvement
– Remember cautions for use of rewards!
16. Grouping, Evaluation, & Time
• Goal structures
• Competitive
• Cooperative
• Individualistic
• Evaluation
• Effects of time pressure
17. Teacher Expectations
• Pygmalion in the classroom
• Self-fulfilling prophecy
• Sustaining expectation effect
• Sources of expectations
– IQ tests
– Sex differences
– Reputations
19. In the classroom
• Amotivation- This occurs when we cannot see the
connection between the action and the outcome,
there is no perceived gain, so the task seems
pointless.
• “What’s the point in….. I’m not doing it…”
• How are expectations communicated to students?
• How can your teachers better communicate
expectations and motivate you or your students?
– Think of a teacher that was particularly encouraging for you.
What motivation strategies did that teacher employ?
20. Motivation Strategies
• Frequent opportunities to respond
• Have students create finished products
• Avoid heavy emphasis on grades and
competition
• Reduce task risk without oversimplifying the
task
• Model motivation to learn
• Teach particular learning tactics
21. Take Home Points!
• Specific, short-term goals
• Task dimensions can also foster motivation to
learn.
– Tasks should be challenging but achievable.
– Approach goals
• Mastery goals
• Performance goals
• Self-fulfilling prophecies
– Self-efficacy
22. Motivation to Learn
“the tendency to find academic activities meaningful
and worthwhile and try to benefit from them”
1. source of motivation:
intrinsic (optimum) vs. extrinsic (diminishes motivation)
2. type of goal set:
learning goal vs. performance goal
3. type of involvement:
task-involved vs. ego-involved
4. achievement motivation:
motivated to achieve vs. failure-avoiding
5. likely attributions:
controllable vs. uncontrollable
6. beliefs about abilities:
Incremental view vs. entity view
