Unit 17: Motivation
What pushes behavior in the first place, from a hungry stomach's simple chemistry to the pull of a goal chosen for its own sake.
4 topics · 12 questions
Each topic is a path, not a menu: work down it in order and every question builds on the one above. Click any of them to watch the answer draw itself.
Drive Reduction and Homeostasis
- How it worksHow does drive-reduction theory explain motivation as behavior aimed at restoring the body's internal balance?
- Going furtherWhat happens to drive-reduction theory's explanatory power once you try to use it to explain someone climbing a mountain for fun?
- Common mistakeWhy doesn't drive-reduction theory alone explain motivations, like curiosity, that don't reduce any biological need?
Your turn1 of 2
A person feels a strong urge to drink water well before their body is dangerously dehydrated, and that urge fades quickly once they've had a few sips, long before all the water has actually been absorbed. A student assumes motivation theories should only care about the body's final, restored physiological state. How does drive-reduction theory explain motivation as behavior aimed at restoring internal balance?Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
- How it worksHow does Maslow's hierarchy order needs so that lower physiological and safety needs generally have to be met before higher ones drive behavior?
- Common mistakeWhy isn't Maslow's hierarchy a strict, universal ladder that every single person climbs in the same fixed order?
- Going furtherWhat happens to the hierarchy's ordering when someone risks their physical safety, a lower need, to pursue a deeply held belief, a higher one?
Your turn1 of 2
Someone who hasn't eaten in two days finds it nearly impossible to focus on a creative project or worry about their reputation among friends. A student assumes any theory ordering human needs must apply this same ordering identically and rigidly in absolutely every situation. How does Maslow's hierarchy order needs so that lower needs generally have to be met before higher ones drive behavior?Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation
- How it worksHow does adding an extrinsic reward for an already enjoyable task crowd out the original intrinsic motivation for doing it?
- Worked exampleFind why children paid to draw drew less on their own afterward than children who were never paid at all, in the classic overjustification study.
- Common mistakeWhy isn't every reward guaranteed to increase how motivated someone is to do a task?
Your turn1 of 2
In a classic study, children who already loved drawing for its own sake were paid to draw, and afterward drew far less on their own than children who were never paid at all. A student assumes adding any reward to an activity should only ever make people want to do that activity more. How does adding an extrinsic reward for an already enjoyable task crowd out the original intrinsic motivation for doing it?The Regulation of Hunger and Eating
- How it worksHow do hormones like ghrelin and leptin signal the hypothalamus to start and stop the drive to eat?
- Worked exampleFind why a meal high in simple sugars causes a rapid insulin spike that can leave you hungrier sooner than a meal balanced with protein and fat.
- Going furtherWhat happens to hunger signaling in the hypothalamus when its ventromedial region is damaged?
Your turn1 of 2
A meal high in simple sugars spikes blood glucose, triggering a large insulin release that overshoots and drops glucose to 68 milligrams per deciliter, below the normal fasting baseline of 90 milligrams per deciliter. Find how far below baseline the trough falls, a drop known to trigger renewed hunger signals.