Motivation
the direction and intensity of one’s effort
Direction of effort
whether an individual seeks out, approaches, or is attracted to a situation
Ex: Attending class, engaging in an exercise program, signing up for the GRE
Intensity of effort
how much effort an individual puts forth in a situation
Ex: How much you focus in class, effort exerted in exercise program, hours spend studying for GRE
Motivation influences…
Our choice of activities
Our effort to pursue goals
The intensity of our effort
Our persistence in the face of failure
Approaches to Motivation
Trait-centered view
Situation-centered view
Interactional view
Trait-centered view (a.k.a. participant-centered view)
motivated behavior is a function of one’s personality
- mostly used in applied sport psychology
Situation-centered view
motivated behavior is a function of the situation
Interactional view
individual factors and the situation interact to influence motivation
Intrinsic motivation
Behavior that comes from within, and will be exhibited even in absence of external reward
Doing the action for the sake of the satisfaction derived from it
Extrinsic motivation
Behavior that comes from an outside source – a means to an end – and will not be exhibited without it
Amotivated
A lack of motivated behavior resulting from a perceived feeling of helplessness
A feeling of “What’s the point?”
3 categories of motivated behavior
Intrinsic motivation
Extrinsic motivation
Amotivated
Do extrinsic rewards impact intrinsic motivation?
Informative v. controlling
Best used sparingly, to reward effort and competence, and when earned
Competition and intrinsic motivation
Success = increases
Failure = decreases
Performing well = increases
Feedback and intrinsic motivation
Positive feedback = increases
Quality over quantity
Relate feedback to effort
Coaching style and intrinsic motivation
Autonomous coach = increases
High levels of control = increases
Self-Determination Theory
All people are motivated to fulfill 3 basic needs:
The need to feel competent
The need to feel autonomous
The need to feel social connectedness
How we achieve these goals varies
Contributing to these needs enhances helps people increase and maintain motivation
2 Major Motivation Sources
Achievement motivation
Competition
Achievement motivation
A person’s efforts to master a task, achieve excellence, overcome obstacles, perform better than others, and take pride in exercising talent.
A person’s orientation to strive for task success, persist in the face of failure, and experience pride in accomplishments.
Competition
achievement behavior in a social context, where evaluation is key
A disposition to strive for satisfaction when making comparisons with some standard of excellence in the presence of evaluative others
Need Achievement Theory
Personality Factors
Situational Factors
Resultant Tendency
Achievement Behavior
Personality Factors
Motive to Achieve
Success
Motive to Avoid
Failure
Situational Factors
Likelihood of
Success
Incentive value
of success
Resultant Tendency
Seek Success
Avoid Failure
Achievement Behavior
Seek Achievement
Situations
Accept Challenges
Avoid Achievement
Situations
Avoid Risk
High achievers (MAS)
Greater capacity to experience pride
Select challenging tasks
Prefer intermediate risks
Perform better when evaluated
Low achievers (MAF)
Greater capacity to experience shame
Avoid challenging tasks
Avoid intermediate risks
Perform worse when evaluated
Attribution Theory
Focuses on how people explain their successes or failures
Stability – is the cause of the result permanent or unstable?
Locus of causality – is the cause of the result internal or external?
Locus of control – is there control over the cause of the result?
How we explain successes and failures to ourselves affects our expectations and emotional reactions
This impacts motivation
Applications of Motivation
Use the environment to enhance motivation
People have multiple motives for participation
We often have competing motivations
Motives differ between age groups, gender, culture
Motives change across our lifespan
Leaders have huge impacts on their team’s motivation
How Leaders Impact Motivation
Reinforcements Positive Frequency of reinforcements/feedback Reward appropriate behaviors Use appropriate types of feedback
Reinforcements
praise or punishment meant to increase or decrease the likelihood of a response
Positive reinforcements used to reward appropriate behavior
Ex: Praise, reward, fun activity, body language
Negative reinforcements used to reduce unwanted behaviors
Ex: Criticism, yelling, sprints, removal from activity, body language
Positive
oriented coaching recommended
Athletes experience greater enjoyment, team cohesion, and like coach and teammates more
Frequency of reinforcements/feedback
Early stages of learning – continuous and immediate reinforcement
Later stages of learning – intermittent reinforcement
“Tapering the feedback”
Reward appropriate behaviors
Shaping – reward successful approximations of skills Reward the performance, not the outcome Reward personal bests Reward effort Reward emotional and social skills
Use appropriate types of feedback
Motivational feedback
Instructional feedback
Attributional feedback
Motivational feedback
attempt to facilitate performance by enhancing confidence, mood, or effort
Instructional feedback
information about the performer’s current level of proficiency and/or the desired level of proficiency
Attributional feedback
drawing inferences as to cause of success/failure
Attribute success to effort and ability, not luck or ease of task
Attribute failure to effort when appropriate; include link to goal
Attribute failure to external factors when appropriate