Motivation Q & A

Primary drives, Secondary drives, Instinct, Motivation Cycle &

Maslow’s Hierarchy

Motivation, Primary & Secondary Drives

• Motivation – active behaviour that satisfies needs and works towards a goal– i.e. Hunting to find food to fill hunger need

• Primary Drive – motive based on innate, biological and survival oriented needs .

• such as: need for sleep, air, food, water• Secondary Drive – motive based on learned

needs that have been acquired through the learning process

• such as: money has no value to an infant, it is only through a learned process does the paper become valuable and a motivator for behaviour

Instinct Motivation Theory

• Instincts are unlearned, biologically built-in, fixed patterns of behaviour

• Instincts may be present at birth delayed until the use is necessary (mature enough) a process called “fixed action patterns”

• Fixed action patterns are specific behaviours that the organism is pre-programmed to perform under specific conditions or when effected by stimuli

• The stimuli in the environment that give rise to the fixed action pattern are known as “releasers”

• Thus the stimuli release the instinctual behaviour pattern• Since lower animals are limited in their responses they

are often guided by instinct ie. The spider will continue to build a web when the web is damaged because it knows no other way to deal with the situation

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory

Lowest level of needs is physiological needs;Food, shelter, water, survival

These needs must be met before youcan move to the next level

Next level of need is safety and securityneeds reflect peoples’ desire for predictability in life.

Safety needs focus on protection from physical harm.Security needs reflect the need to provide for oneself and one’s family.

Next level of needs Social or belongingness needs deal with emotional and mental well-being.

Research has revealed that our needs for affection, a sense of belonging, and group identification are as important for health as food and safety

Self-esteem is a term that describes how you feel about yourself.

Esteem needs relate to a person’s self-respect and the respect he or she receives from others.

Self-actualization needs represent a person’s need for growth.Self-actualization is people fulfilling their potential or realizing their fullest capacities as human beings

• Maslow’s theory is an optimistic and positive view of human nature because the focus is on human growth & achieving maximum potential

• All levels of the needs are innate to human nature

• Some have argued that “self-actualization” is an innate need, that humans strive towards once other needs are met

• Someone at this level is able to deal with the world in a non-possessive, non-demanding and creative ways --- very few people

• Most people get entangled in dealing with relationship (belonging) / self-esteem and/or safety / survival

Motivation Cycle

Drive

Action

Drive Subsides

TimeElapses

Need

Motivation can be

• Internal - comes from the satisfaction that occurs when a task is performed.

• When you enjoy doing your job, you are self-motivated. The motivation comes from job content, not job environment.

• External - is an action taken by another person. It usually involves anticipation of a reward.

• Typical rewards in the workplace setting include money, awards, and performance feedback.

Summary

• People are motivated by different needs.• The steps an individual goes through to

satisfy a need are called the motivational cycle.

• Motives are individualistic.• Motives change over time.• According to Maslow, motives vary in

strength and importance and can be arranged in an order called a hierarchy.