Motivation. Why we do stuff. It would seem pretty straightforward at first glance. Most of us would suggest it’s because we get some reward, whether tangible or not, as a consequence of our actions; an incentive is apparent at the conclusion and is known as The Incentive Theory of Motivation. There are six other main theories of motivation:

Need Theories

Championed by Abraham Maslow, the famed Hierarchy of Needs describes a pyramid of motivating needs that must be met before advancement to the next level, starting with physiological needs such as breathing, water, sex and food (though not necessarily in that order!), then safety needs such as warmth, shelter and security.

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The pyramid continues upwards with love and belonging needs, through esteem, and capping out at self-actualization. A self-actualized person is someone whose “regular” needs are all being met. As a result, s/he is pretty much at peace with him or herself, living creatively, vitally, and meaningfully.

Before his death in 1970, Maslow suggested there was another level above actualization; self-transcendence. Think of people like Ghandi, Nelson Mandela, and the Dalai Lama to give you an idea.

Drive-reduction theories

These theories suggest it is our biological drives that motivate us to act. Drives like hunger, thirst and sex. These drives increase in salience over time until they are sated, when the drive temporarily diminishes.

Clearly, this does not paint a complete picture of human motivational behavior. For example, it does not account for secondary reinforcers of behavior such as money.

Broad Theories

A relatively new concept in motivational theories is the “Onion-Ring-Model of Achievement Motivation” by Heinz Schuler, George C. Thornton III, Andreas Frintrup and Rose Mueller-Hanson. The concept is based on the premise that broad constituents of personality promotes performance motivation. As such, a range of dimensions not usually regarded as being involved are attributed to professional success. It combines the usually separate ideas of Need for Achievement with social motives such as control or dominance.

Cognitive Theories

Cognitive motivational theories centre around goal theory, wherein people strive towards clearly established end states. The efficiency of the goal is dependant on three measures; proximity, difficulty and specificity. Proximity refers to the time between behavior initiation and achievement of the end state and is inversely proportional to motivation magnitude; the less time, the more motivation. Which is why most kids would rather learn to ride a bike than do their algebra homework. Difficulty is self-explanatory. Specificity describes the clarity of the goal. If we don’t know exactly what it is we’re going to get, we don’t strive quite so hard to achieve it.

Models of Behavior Change

Motivation is regarded as a process that culminates in the molding of behavioral intentions. Volition is described as the process that bridges intent and actual behavior. Motivation is the setting of the goal, whereas volition is the pursuit of that goal.

Unconscious Motivation

If we delve into the psychoanalytical, we find, according to Maslow, “Psychoanalysis has often demonstrated that the relationship between a conscious desire and the ultimate unconscious aim that underlies it need not be at all direct.” In other words, motives that may seem obvious may well not be. For example, eating can be a defensive measure to combat lack of attention, rather than to satisfy a drive or need.

As can be seen, describing behavior is something of a toss-up. Many motivational theories co-exist, describing the same things in different ways.

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