Three Theories Of Motivation

According to Spector (2012), motivation is, “an internal state that induces a person to engage in particular behaviors” (p. 188). From one perspective it involves three components: direction, intensity, and persistence. Direction is “the choice of specific behaviors from a larger number of possible behaviors” (p .188). Intensity refers to “the amount of effort a person expends on doing a task” (p. 188). Persistence can be defined as, “the continuing engagement in a behavior over time” (p. 188). Basically, motivation is a drive that causes a person to act upon their desire, and involves direction, intensity, and persistence. There are several theories of motivation, including need theories, expectancy theory, self-efficacy theory, justice theory, goal-setting theory, control theory, and action theory. My person personal motivation can be applied to each of these theories.

Need Theories Need theories view motivation as coming from one’s desire for something. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Herzburg’s Two Factor Model are both need theories. How they work is, there is a deficit that causes anxiety and we are motivated to remove the tension. Maslow’s hierarchy

Motivation for this model comes from the job by itself, not the situation. The factors of this theory are hygiene factors and motivator factors. Hygiene factors are elements that when absent, cause job dissatisfaction. Motivator factors do lead to job satisfaction when present. Hygiene factors do not necessarily motivate you, but keep you from becoming unhappy. Some hygiene factors in my life are the quality of professors at Olivet, relationships with my peers and coworkers, and getting treated fairly by my professors. Motivator factors in my life include wanting to do well in a class and wanting to learn in a class, needing to grow personally, hopefully being accepted into graduate school, and the responsibility I have as a student to do my best