1.Instinct theory

Representative figures

American psychologist McDougall systematically proposed the instinctual theory of motivation.

Theoretical content

All human behavior is based on instinct; Instinct is the fundamental source and driving force of all human thoughts and actions; Instinct has three components: energy, behavior, and goal orientation; The personality and will of individuals and nations are also formed through the gradual development of instincts; Human beings have 18 instincts, such as avoidance, rejection, curiosity, aggression, acquisition, confidence, reproduction, sociability, inferiority, and construction.

Application

Instinct theory dominates in some research fields. One is Freud's psychoanalytic theory, which is based on instinct theory and believes that the driving force of human psychological activity is determined by the innate instinctual drive of human beings. This instinctual drive creates a state of tension in humans, drives them to take action, and achieves satisfaction by eliminating tension. The psychoanalytic theory also holds that the most fundamental instincts of humans are the instinct for life and the instinct for death, which are the two basic driving forces of human behavior. Another is Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory, which holds that human behavior is determined by the innate potential for self actualization.

Criticism

Instinct theory cannot accurately explain the reasons for behavior. The explanation of human behavior by instinct theory is a cyclical process of argumentation, such as why do people exhibit aggressive behavior? The answer is that humans have an attacking instinct. How do you know that people have this instinct? The answer is that people have various aggressive behaviors. In addition, many instinctual behaviors listed by instinct theory, such as confidence and inferiority, are actually formed under the influence of learning, experience, and culture.

2. Driving force theory

(1)Driving force theory

The representative figure is Woodworth.

Theoretical content: Motivation refers to a state of tension in an individual caused by physiological needs (such as the need for food, sexual needs, and the need to escape pain), which can stimulate or drive individual behavior to meet needs, eliminate tension, and restore the balance of the body.

(2)Driving force reduction theory

The representative figure is Hull.

Theoretical content: Individuals have needs in order to survive. Need to generate driving force. Drive is a motivational structure that provides the body with strength or energy, satisfying needs and reducing drive. Human behavior is primarily governed by habits, rather than biological drive. Drive provides energy for behavior, while habit determines the direction of behavior. Hull believed that some driving forces come from internal stimuli and do not need to be learned, known as primitive driving forces; Some driving forces come from external stimuli and are obtained through learning, known as acquired driving forces.

Hull believed that drive (D) and habit intensity (H) jointly determine an individual's effective behavioral potential (P), and their relationship can be expressed as:

P＝D×H

Application: Hull's theory is applicable to explaining biological functions such as eating, drinking, sleeping, and sexual behavior. Depriving food can generate hunger (drive), which drives individuals to search for food and engage in eating behavior, thereby reducing drive.

Criticism: The theory of reduced motivation cannot explain other behaviors, such as why a person can work all night long? Because in this behavior, human drive does not decrease, but increases.

3.Awakening Theory

(1) Representative figures include Hebe and Berlin.

(2) Theoretical content: People are always awakened and maintain an optimal level of physiological activation, neither too high nor too low. The preference for arousal level is a factor that determines individual behavior. Generally speaking, individuals prefer a moderate level of stimulation because it can elicit the optimal level of arousal.

(3) Three principles

① The first principle: People prefer the optimal level of arousal. The relationship between stimulus level and preference is an inverted U-shaped curve.

② The second principle: simplification principle, which means that repeated stimulation can lower the level of arousal.

③ The third principle: personal experience influences preferences. Research has shown that experienced individuals prefer complex stimuli. Experience can also help individuals better organize stimuli.

4.Incentive theory

(1) The representative figure is Hull.

(2) Theoretical content:

Inducement refers to stimuli that can meet an individual's needs and have the effect of stimulating or enticing the individual towards a goal. Inducing factors can be material, such as food, fashion, etc; It can also be complex events and situations, such as gaining reputation, status, etc. Any attractive stimulus that people hope to receive can become a trigger. There are positive and negative triggers, and attractive stimuli are called positive triggers; The stimuli that individuals avoid, such as pain, poverty, failure, etc., are called negative triggers. Hull added the variable of inducement to the formula.

P＝D×H×K

Among them, K is the incentive motivation. P. The meanings of D and H are the same as before.

5.Cognitive Theory

Modern cognitive theory holds that individuals process information from the outside world through encoding, storage, extraction, and output, forming various different ideas in their minds. These concepts mediate between stimuli and behavior, as they can both induce and alter behavior. In this sense, cognition has a motivational function.