Weeks 1 & 2: The Beginning

Motivation & Emotion: An introduction


In the first lecture I found it quite interesting looking at the definition of motivation.  I had never considered how much affect motivation has on our behaviour; in particular the idea that motivation is what leads to a certain behaviour changing or stopping.  This was brought up in both the week's chapter and lecture. Through the reading I found that this is considered to be caused by the complex interaction of different motivating forces.  It is has always intrigued me that our brain is continuously battling to keep us alive, and the fact that it is motivation that allows for this constant makes this topic all the more interesting for me.

The history of motivation, though it can seem somewhat dry, also appealed to me.  The fact that many different theories of motivation were put forth and rejected shows that this is a growing and changing study, and it has not become staid.  Philosophy interests me, and thus the idea that theories of motivation began with philosophers does not surprise me.  The growth and change of the ideas in this field from the past 100 years shows that there is still much for us to learn of the mind and how it operates.  This fact helps to remind us that the human brain is remarkable in its workings.

I must also point out that whilst we were examining the differing sources of motivation, I found that the internal motives are much more interesting to me than the external factors.  I'm ecstatic at the chance to delve deeper into the world of emotions, as I find this area one of the most interesting in psychological study.  I am interested not only in how emotions effect us, but also how we can affect our emotions.

As mentioned in the text there was a change in the study of motivation which led to studies in areas that were more socially relevant. For me this is an important step, as I find research that better equip us to deal with and understand daily life most important. I understand the practicality of having many smaller theories on motivation, but still would like to see some kind of overarching schema; perhaps the definition of motivation can be used in this way.