1.+Introduction+to+Motivation



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**1.1 What is Motivation?**
According to //Webster's English Dictionary//, **motivation** is defined as something that causes a person to act. It is an internal state that determines the level of enthusiasm and degree of effort that is made. In education, students who are motivated to learn are passionate and truly care about their learning. Barkley (2010) states that student engagement is centered at the intersection of motivation and active learning. Therefore, as demonstrated in the quote below, learner motivation is an essential consideration for all instructors in all disciplines.

//"There are three things to remember about education. The first one is motivation. The second one is motivation. The third one is motivation."// - Terrell H. Bell

**1.2 Two Types of Learner Motivation**
According to recent research (e.g. Deci & Ryan, 2008; Sungur & Senler, 2010; Visser et al., 2001), the motivation to learn comes in two forms: **intrinsic** and **extrinsic** []

Extrinsically motivated behavior is linked to some external goal such as good grades, monetary rewards, parent or teacher approval, or avoidance of negative consequences. In other words, the external goal is the reason for the behavior. In contrast, intrinsic motivation is driven by a force that comes from within, resulting in activity engagement because the activity itself is interesting and enjoyable. The positive feelings arising from the task itself are the reason for performing the activity.

College teaching tends to follow an extrinsic reinforcement model based on tests, grades, and competition among students. This tendency is based on the assumption that student success is directly proportional to external rewards. As of the past few decades, researchers have realized that extrinsic rewards encourage a weak conceptual understanding, and this understanding is less persistent than if it were driven by intrinsic motivation (Ginsberg & Wlodkowski, 2009).

The following video is a fascinating discussion of motivation by career analyst Daniel Pink, clearly illustrating the flaws in the concept of extrinsic motivation:

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To learn more about intrinsic motivation, check out the article entitled //What is Intrinsic Motivation?// by Ray Andrew//.//

As stated in section 1.2 above, intrinsic motivation is the most effective and longest lasting type of motivation. All students posses some degree of intrinsic motivation, but it is up to the instructor to enhance the curiosity and need for learning within each student (PIDP 3250 notes, 2011). The quality of the classroom experience and the processes that occur in the classroom can significantly influence the level of intrinsic motivation among learners. The following table adapted from PIDP 3250 notes (2011) outlines five factors that must be considered by instructors in order to tap into the intrinsic motivation of their students. ***NOTE: Factor #5 is the focus of this wiki.**

**1.4 Theories Behind Motivation to Learn**
In the past century, changes in psychological research methods have led to more focused research on the principles of motivation. The field of educational psychology began to focus on the role of motivation in the learning process. From this research, numerous theories to explain the motivation behind learning were developed. These theories have evolved over the past 60 years to give instructors a clearer understanding of the various reasons for student motivation as well as the role that the instructors play in determining student motivation.

The earliest motivational theories were based on the view that everything humans do is regarded as behaviors (Brophy, 2004). These behaviors are acquired or modified based on interaction with the environment, which is called conditioning (Cherry, n.d.). The study of behaviorism was greatly influenced by Ivan Pavlov and John Watson, but B.F. Skinner's studies on operant conditioning were also influential in the field of behavioral psychology. Operant conditioning occurs when an individual modifies their behavior due to an association with reinforcement or punishment (Cherry, n.d.). In other words, punishment causes a behavior to occur less often and reinforcement causes a behavior to occur more frequently.

//"The consequences of behavior determine the probability that the behavior will occur again."// - B.F. Skinner In the 1960s, needs-based theories became popular alternatives to behaviorism. Maslow created the Hierarchy of Needs, which is shown in the diagram below:

[] As shown in the diagram, the fundamental needs at the lower levels of the hierarchy must be satisfied before the individual will focus their motivation on higher needs (Brophy, 2004). In other words, people must have the basic physiological needs met before they can feel safe in their environment, and once safety is established they can focus on love and belonging, and so on. The needs level a person is at will determine what motivates their behavior. Around the same time that Maslow developed the Hierarchy of Needs, Herzberg created the Two Factor Theory. According to Herzberg, people's actions are influenced by two independently operating types of factors: motivation factors (growth, achievement, etc.) and hygiene factors (pay, personal life, etc.) (Chapman, 2010). Hygiene factors tend to have short-term effects and are geared towards preventing dissatisfaction, while motivation factors are longer-lasting. In 1969, Alderfer built upon Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and developed the ERG Theory. Alderfer stated that humans have three basic needs: existence (physical), relatedness (social), and growth (personal) (Alderfer, 1969). He believed that these needs could be satisfied in any order. McClelland took the ERG Theory one step further and determined that motivation and effectiveness are influenced by 3 needs: achievement, affiliation, and power (McClelland, 1975). Within each individual, there are different levels of each of these 3 needs.

In the past few decades, motivation theories changed from being reactive to certain stimuli to being more proactive, shifting the focus from basic human needs to goals (Brophy, 2004). Researchers began to understand motivation as self-determined and self-regulated rather than a response to external pressures. For example, Locke's Goal Setting Theory is a cognitive theory based on human motivation by specific and feedback that is clear and timely (No author, 1996). In 1985, Deci and Ryan developed the Self-Determination Theory, which emphasized 3 innate needs for self-motivation: competence, relatedness, and autonomy (Deci & Ryan, 1985). If these three needs are satisfied by people's social settings, they will see their behavior as instrinsically-motivated. A third example of a cognitive motivational theory is the Expectancy-Value Theory developed by Fishbein in 1975. According to this theory, a learner's motivation is determined by how much they value the goal and whether they expect to success (Wigfield, 1994). It's important to note that value and expectancy are multiplied, not added together, to equal motivation. This is because if one of the two terms is zero, then the resulting motivation is zero.

In 1993, Csikszentmihalyi caotured what the experiences of motivation actually feel like using a concept called Flow. Flow occurs when people have a clear set of goals and their skills are fully involved in achieving these goals. Feelings of Flow include timelessness, serenity, involvement, ecstasy, and inner clarity (Csikszentmihalyi, 1997). The following video features Csikszentmihalyi explaining the concept of Flow and why it was developed:

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There are many more motivational theories that exist. The Wikipedia article entitled //Motivation// provides an excellent summary of the above information, with links to further information about the many motivational theories.

**References**
Alderfer, C.P. (1969). An empirical test of a new theory of human needs. //Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 4//(2), 142-175.

Barkley, E.F. (2010). //Student engagement techniques: a handbook for college faculty//. San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass.

Brophy, J. (2004). //Motivating students to learn//, 2nd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Chapman, A. (2010). //Frederick Herzberg motivational theory//. Retrieved November 21, 2011, from []

Cherry, K. (n.d.). //What is behaviorism?//Retrieved November 21, 2011, from []

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1997). //Finding flow//. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers.

Deci, E.L. & Ryan, R.M. (1985). The general causality orientations scale: self-determination in personality. //Journal of Research in Personality, 19//(2), 109-134.

Deci, E.L. & Ryan, R.M. (2008). Self-determination theory: a macrotheory of human motivation, development, and health. //Canadian Psychology, 49//(3), 182-185.

Ginsberg, M.B., & Wlodkowski, R.J. (2009). //Diversity & motivation: culturally responsive teaching in college//, 2nd ed. San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass.

McClelland, D.C. (1975). //Power: the inner experience//. Oxford, England: Irvington.

No author. (1996). //Locke's Goal Setting Theory//. Retrieved November 21, 2011, from []

PIDP 3250 notes. (2011). //Motivation to learn//. Unit 3: Motivation. Retrieved October 12, 2011, from []

Sungur, S. & Senler, B. (2010). Students' achievement goals in relation to academic motivation, competence expectancy, and classroom environment perceptions. //Educational Research and Evaluation, 16//(4), 303-324.

TEDtalksDirector. (2008, October 24). Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: creativity, fulfillment and flow [Video file]. Retrieved from []

TEDtalksDirector. (2009, August 25). Daniel Pink on the surprising science of motivation [Video file]. Retrieved from []

Visser, L., Plomp, T., Amirault, R.J., & Kuiper, W. (2001). Motivating students at a distance: the case of an international audience. //Educational Technology Research and Development, 50//(2), 94-110. Retrieved from []

Wigfield, A. (1994). Expectancy-Value Theory of achievement motivation. //Educational Psychology Review, 6//(1), 50-78. Retrieved from []