There are several major theories of motivation that attempt to explain human behavior. The incentive theory suggests that external rewards motivate people to engage in certain behaviors. The drive theory proposes that biological needs like hunger or thirst create internal tension that drives people to act to reduce that tension. The arousal theory posits that people aim to maintain an optimal level of arousal and will take actions to decrease or increase it. The humanistic theory emphasizes cognitive motivations like fulfilling one's potential. The expectancy theory argues that people are motivated by expectations of positive outcomes they believe they can achieve.

2. What is motivation ?
 Motivation is an internal process that makes a person move
toward a goal. Motivation, like intelligence, can’t be directly
observed. Instead, motivation can only be inferred by noting
a person’s behavior.

3. Overview
 At a simple level, it seems obvious
that people do things, such as go
to work, in order to get stuff they
want and to avoid stuff they don't
want.
 Why exactly they want what they
do and don't want what they don't
is still something a mystery. It's a
black box and it hasn't been fully
penetrated.
 Overall, the basic perspective on
motivation looks something like
this:
Behavio
ur
Satisfac
tion
Need

4. Theories of Motivation
Researchers have developed a number of different theories to
explain motivation. Each individual theory tends to be rather
limited in scope. However, by looking at the key ideas behind
each theory, you can gain a better understanding of motivation
as a whole.

5. Instinct Theory of Motivation
People are motivated to behave in
certain ways because they are
evolutionarily programmed to do so.
An example of this in the animal world is
seasonal migration. These animals do not
learn to do this, it is instead an inborn
pattern of behavior. Instincts motivation
some species to migrate at certain times
each year.
William James created a list of human
instincts that included such things as
attachment, play, shame, anger, fear,
shyness, modesty and love.

6. Incentive Theory of Motivation
People are motivated to do things
because of external rewards. For
example, you might be motivated to go
to work each day for the monetary
reward of being paid. Behavioral
learning concepts such as association
and reinforcement play an important
role in this theory of motivation.
It instead proposes that people
intentionally pursue certain courses of
action in order to gain rewards. The
greater the perceived rewards, the
more strongly people are motivated to
pursue those reinforcements.

7. The Incentive Theory of Motivation
 There are a many different reasons why we do things.
Sometimes we are motivated to act because of internal
desires and wishes, but at other times our behaviors are
driven by a desire for external rewards. The incentive theory
is one of the major theories of motivation and suggests that
behavior is motivated by a desire for reinforcement or
incentives.
 Definitions of Incentive Theory "According to this view,
people are pulled toward behaviors that offer positive
incentives and pushed away from behaviors associated with
negative incentives. In other words, differences in behavior
from one person to another or from one situation to another
can be traced to the incentives available and the value a
person places on those incentives at the time."
(Bernstein, 2011)

8. Important Observations About
Incentive Theory
 Incentives can be used to get people to engage in certain
behaviors, but they can also be used to get people
to stop performing certain actions.
 Incentives only become powerful if the individual places
importance on the reward.
 Rewards have to be obtainable in order to be motivating. For
example, a student will not be motivated to earn a top grade
on an exam if the assignment is so difficult that it is not
realistically achievable.

9. Drive Theory of Motivation
 According to the drive theory of motivation,
people are motivated to take certain actions in
order to reduce the internal tension that is
caused by unmet needs. For example, you
might be motivated to drink a glass of water in
order to reduce the internal state of thirst.
 This theory is useful in explaining behaviors
that have a strong biological component, such
as hunger or thirst. The problem with the drive
theory of motivation is that these behaviors are
not always motivated purely by physiological
needs. For example, people often eat even
when they are not really hungry.

10. Drive-reduction Theory
 Drive-reduction theory refers to the idea that
humans are motivated to reduce these drives,
such as eating to reduce the feeling of
hunger. This restores homeostasis, a steady
internal state.

11. Drive-reduction Theory
 Drive-reduction theory was first developed by Clark
Hull in 1943. According to this theory, deviations
from homeostasis create physiological needs. These
needs result in psychological drive states that direct
behavior to meet the need and, ultimately, bring the
system back to homeostasis.
Clark Hull

12. Arousal Theory of Motivation
 The arousal theory suggests that people take certain
actions to either decrease or increase levels of arousal.
 When arousal levels get too low, for example, a person
might watch an exciting movie or go for a jog. When
arousal levels get too high, on the other hand, a person
would probably look for ways to relax such as
meditating or reading a book.
 According to this theory, we are motivated to maintain
an optimal level of arousal, although this level can vary
based on the individual or the situation.

13. Humanistic Theory of Motivation
 Humanistic theories of motivation are based on the
idea that people also have strong cognitive reasons
to perform various actions. This is famously
illustrated in Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of
needs which presents different motivations at
different levels.
 First, people are motivated to fulfill basic
biological needs for food and shelter, as well as
those of safety, love, and esteem. Once the lower
level needs have been met, the primary motivator
becomes the need for self-actualization, or the
desire to fulfill one's individual potential.

14. Expectancy Theory of Motivation
 The expectancy theory of motivation suggests that when
we are thinking about the future, we formulate different
expectations about what we think will happen. When we
predict that their will most likely be a positive outcome, we
believe that we have the ability to make that possible future
a reality. This leads people to feel more motivated to
pursue those likely outcomes.
 The theory proposes that motivations consists of three key
elements: valence, instrumentality, and expectancy.
Valence refers to the value with place on the potential
outcome. Things that seem unlikely to produce personal
benefit have a low valence, while those that offer
immediate personal rewards have a much higher valence.

15. Expectancy Theory of Motivation
 Instrumentality refers to whether people believe that they
have a role to play in the predicted outcome. If the event
seems random or outside of the individual's control,
people will feel less motivated to pursue that course of
action. If the individual plays a major role in the success of
the endeavor, however, people well feel more
instrumental in the process.
 Expectancy is the belief that one has the capabilities to
produce the outcome. If people feel like they lack the skills
or knowledge to achieve the desired outcome, they will be
less motivated to try. People who feel capable, on the
other hand, will be more likely to try to reach that goal.

16. References:
 https://www.verywell.com/theories-of-
motivation-2795720
 https://www.boundless.com/psychology/te
xtbooks/boundless-psychology-
textbook/motivation-12/theories-of-
motivation-65/drive-reduction-theory-of-
motivation-250-12785/

17. Done By:
 Sarah AbuZarour
 Yara AlMureabh
 Tasneem AlDiry
 Ghaida AlKharashi
 Reema AlRumayan
Section 922