Understanding the “Engine”, Essay Example

Overview

The desire to understand why people pursue goals, no matter the nature of them, has long been a fascination for psychologists, sociologists, and ordinary human beings simply seeking to comprehend the mechanisms behind will and effort.  It is easy, and not entirely inaccurate, to assert that people are motivated to do a thing because they want the result, and/or because the effort itself satisfies a need.  At the same time, even this definition of motivation goes to dimensions and layers not immediately evident.  To begin with, there is the matter of defining “need” itself and, as psychologists tend to support, the term is misleading if it is interpreted as literal.  More exactly, degree of desire itself determines how need is felt by an individual, and this is reinforced by a number of widely accepted theories of motivation.  Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory, for example, prioritizes drives that are essential necessary for survival.  Physiological and safety needs head the list, as satisfying hunger, thirst, and the need to be protected from physical harm require no investigation as to motive.  These are primal needs and the sheer physiological nature of them transcends concerns as to potentially obscure motivation.  On another level, however, Maslow includes a range of psychological and emotional elements removed from such direct need, as he perceives that impulses to be loved, respected, and attain self-actualization are needs in themselves (Robbins, Judge  183). Here, then, it may be argued that “need” is subject to relativity; certainly, degree of need to be cared for varies among humans, and this then indicates an inestimable range of motivation in place.  This in turn suggests motivation as mutable, and potentially linked to individual character as dictating its presence.

ERG Theory, developed after Maslow, adds components to the Hierarchy in that it addresses how motivation acts as a mechanism, or as a complex process.  For example, ERG Theory affirms, unlike Maslow, that multiple needs may demand satisfaction simultaneously (Robbins, Judge 184), and this is a critical point in understanding the universality of motivation. In ERG thinking, everything regarding an individual’s being, from education to family life, influences how high-order and lower-order needs are approached and satisfied, and the theory also makes the further, and fascinating, distinction that people will more acutely seek to satisfy lower-order needs when the higher-order needs are unfulfilled (Robbins, Judge 185).   McClelland takes a more “cynical” perspective, holding that achievement, power, and affiliation are the primary motivators.  Along these lines, Goal-Setting, Reinforcement, and Equity Theories more directly address people as motivated by tangible rewards, and appear top be concerned primarily with job performance.  Other employee-related theories exist, but Vroom’s Expectancy Theory essentially ties these in with more basic thinking, claiming that a simple formula is in place for most human beings: the level of motivation is determined by how the individual perceives the outcome to the action, and how high a value the person places on that outcome (Robbins, Judge 189-207).  Motivation, it seems, allows for both intense and specific examination and a more general sense of basic human drive to attain what is needed or desired.

All of this is supported by other investigators, actual cases, and my own personal experience.  Regarding the former elements, it appears that motivation is endlessly challenging to experts, and more in terms of “active” function.  For example, psychologist Paul White asserts that the need to comprehend motivation is fundamental to understanding human behavior at all, because to have a motive and then be motivated translates to the individual’s perceiving they have a reason to act (Weigel). Others, like psychologist Shlomo Breznitz, reflect the pragmatism of the job performance-based theories and delve into how needs as typically changing alter motivated behaviors, and how the presence of need itself determines the existence of motivation; when, for example, a person is given everything they desire with no effort, the generating of motivation does not occur because, simply, no need exists for the person to act.  Similarly, those in environments denying reward or opportunity of any kind achieve “learned helplessness” and lose their drive to be motivated (Weigel).

With regard to actual examples of how these processes occur, and in terms of more proactive motivation, it is noted that internal and instrumental drives are essentially responsible for motivation.  The internal goes to the person’s desire or need to attain satisfaction important to the self, as when a scientist engages in research solely to gain knowledge.  The instrumental exists when there is an object in view, and the two drives certainly are not mutually exclusive. That same scientist, for instance, may be as motivated to achieve recognition as they are to understand the subject.  The relationship between the elements is, however, complex.  In a study on West Point cadets, for example, it was found that those with stronger internal motivations performed more successfully than those with more instrumental ambitions. More interestingly, cadets with strong internal and instrumental drives fared less well (Wrzesniewski, Schwartz).  This suggests that motivation is not merely complex, but complex in a way in which multiple forms of it collectively impede the greater goal. It suggests as well that motivation may be more directly linked to individual character than believed, simply because these examples indicate it as inextricably related to everything going to human thinking and behavior on all levels.  Put another way, and with theories, external opinions and research, and examples supporting the idea, the “engine” of motivation is difficult to pin down chiefly because it encompasses, or is encompassed by, the reality of being human, and both as individual and as member of society or workplace.  It is in no way discrediting to all the researchers and theorists concerned with motivation to then claim that, in a general sense, the subject is probed in virtually endless and often circular ways.

Personal Perspectives and Experience

When I reflect upon my own history and the trajectory of my life to this point, my conviction that motivation is in fact an ingrained component of us is all the more confirmed.  Some of the research discussed certainly reinforces that motivation has a gradation aspect to it; as ERG Theory holds that a more primal need will demand satisfaction when a higher-order need is not addressed, so too do the performance-based theories acknowledge that human beings are motivated by degree of interest in reward and outcome.  More importantly, the perception of the outcome’s value as critical to motivation powerfully emphasizes what I have experienced in my own life; namely, that we ourselves determine the value of a thing before we even begin to develop the ambition for it leading to motivation.  Certainly, we all tend to attach value to specific things such as higher pay, popularity, and greater respect in our fields.  At the same time, I believe that even in these commonalities there exists multiple degree of difference, and motivation is varied within these spheres because we do not value such things in identical ways.  This in turn goes to how individual character is so closely tied to motivation, and how character is what, in my estimation, powers the “engine” of motivation.

Having moved to the United States only five years ago from my native Romania, I could easily assert that a potent motivation to advance my life and further my education is what guides me.  This is true to a very large extent, but how this force is actually manifested is what compels me to think of motivation as so deeply individual.  To be candid, in fact, my years as a server in America were by no means consumed with ambitions to better myself.  My “motivation” at the time was to provide as comfortable a living for myself as possible and adjust to my new world.  During this job, however, I became exposed to several people working in finance, and I was greatly impressed with their confidence and intelligence.  Over time, this inspired me to alter my course and work toward just such a life.  The choice was far from casually made or easy; funding my own education denied me the freedom I had previously enjoyed, just as the study was challenging. Nonetheless, I was now acting with a motivated drive, and this in turn created a different meaning to even the struggles. The value I attached to what was to be my future altered the way I perceived limitations in my freedom, just as paying for every lesson generated in me a greater appreciation for the education itself.

More to the point, I do not believe that this motivation was random or even spontaneous, appearances notwithstanding.  More exactly, I believe my nature was waiting to recognize the right course and thus commit to it.  It is this same conviction that fuels my confidence in moving on to leadership and management roles.  Having recognized what genuinely motivates me, I find I am all the more inspired to enhance my capabilities in these directions and make the most of the potentials I have been realizing since my education began in earnest.  All of this is why I believe the “engine” of motivation is essentially an extension of who we are, as I have been fortunate enough to find my own drive so connected to who I am and to the woman I seek to become.

Conclusion

It is likely that motivation will long be a major concern for all those interested in understanding human behavior, as well as a vital concern for all others simply “living” it.  While theories abound and present excellent ideas, I nonetheless perceive motivation as more visceral, and less reliant upon specific “motivations” as research tends to hold.  My own life informs me of this as a reality, in that the way my character has developed is directly connected to how it has been motivated to advance and succeed in my studies.  The distinction is important, in that character and motivation so powerfully interact with one another, each shaping the individual.  This is the truth for me, and it is one I rely upon as I seek to let my deep motivation guide me on, and forward.

Works Cited

Robbins, Stephen P., and Timothy A. Judge. “Motivation Concepts.” Organizational Behavior. 16th Ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2013. 182-213. Print.

Weigel, Jen. “Increase Motivation.” Chicago Tribune. N.p., 14 Aug. 2012. Web. 11 Oct. 2014.

Wrzesniewski, Amy, and Barry Schwartz. “The Secret of Effective Motivation.” The New York Times. 05 July 2014. Web. 11 Oct. 2014.