Ever since I began my teaching career, I have been fascinated with the topic of motivation and the role it plays in student learning. Daniel Pink’s book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, has been on my personal reading list for a couple of years now, and I was elated to find that it was one of the recommended books to read for this assignment. I have often wondered why some of my students, and even one of my own children, are more internally driven than others to complete a given task. Now that I am in the process of becoming a school administrator, my curiosity about what motivates adults has been heightened, as well. In the hopes of finding some insight, and perhaps the answers to some of my burning questions, I finally picked up Daniel Pink’s book and began reading.
Drive begins with a look at the work of scientists, Harry Harlow and Edward Deci and their early experiments on motivation. As a result of their research on motivational theory, these two individuals uncovered a completely different and unique way of looking at what drives human behavior. Harlow, in his experiment with rhesus monkeys, and Deci, with his Soma puzzle cubes, found that rewards and were not the only factors at work in motivating task completion. The notion of “intrinsic motivation”, or pursuing a task for the sake of enjoyment and self-fulfillment was born.
Prior to Harlow and Deci’s work, motivation could be explained in only one of two ways. The motivation to survive, also referred to by Pink as Motivation 1.0, has always been basic to our existence. Motivation 1.0 operates under the premise that “I need to do something” in order to get my basic needs met. It is a drive that dates back to the dawn of man and explains what...
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...ssional growth.” (Cunningham, 2009). If the research is showing us that students are more motivated and learn best in environments that are rich in autonomy, mastery, and purpose, then I, as a school principal, will need to be an advocate for that to happen in my school. Students who are offered a chance to connect with others in self-directed, meaningful, and rigorous activities are going to be more motivated to be here to learn. Teachers who provide students with this type of learning environment will be more happier and more satisfied, as well. Why? Because it works.
References and Bibliography
Cunningham, W.G., & Cordeiro, P.A. (2009). Educational leadership: A bridge to improved
practice. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Pink, D. H. (2009). Drive: the surprising truth behind what motivates us. New York: Riverhead
Books (Penguin Group).
Author Daniel Pink argues in his book Drive- The surprising truth about what motivates us that motivation is mostly intrinsic. He defines the three categories of motivation – autonomy, mastery and purpose. For the author, “old fashioned” methods such as “carrots and sticks”, a.k.a. rewards and punishment, should not be regarded by companies, as money is the dominant factor.
In the book Drive, Daniel Pink expresses his ideas about several motivations we still use today and he argues that businesses have not caught up to what science is proving about autonomy, mastery and purpose. I am someone who believes motivation and these three components will get you far in life. In my future career I plan to use and explain the importance of Motivation 3.0 and how in Pinks perspective it works.
Based on the different reasons or goals that give rise to an action, motivation can be classified into intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation (Ryan and Deci, 2000). The first type, intrinsic motivation, refers to doing something because “it is inherently interesting or enjoyable” (Ryan and Deci, 2000, p. 55). This type of motivation refers to the reasons for L2 learning that are derived from one’s inherent pleasure and interest in the activity and the activity is performed because of the spontaneous satisfaction associated with it (Noels, 2001). Researchers (e.g. (Vallerand, 1997; Vallerand et al., 1992; Noels et al., 2000) have categorized intrinsic motivation into three subtypes: (1) intrinsic motivation-Knowledge, which is the motivation
The author trusts that all humans have some level of motivation as long as they exist. In turn, there are several well-known classic approaches that consider motivation such as instinct, drive reduction, arousal, incentive, and humanistic approaches. It is beyond the scope of this paper to describe all in detail, but a brief synopsis of each follows: (1) Instinct approach theorists suggest that humans have many diverse instincts that are biologically determined and cause innate patterns of behaviors such as reproducing, territorial protection, curiosity, acquisition, and fight, flight or freeze to name a few (McDougall, 1908). (2) Drive-reduction theory proposes that individuals have needs that are essential for survival and this need cause a tension to act called a drive. These drives entail primary drives for physical needs such as water and food, and acquired drives realized through conditioning or experience such as the need for income or social acceptance; whereas, one must meet the need to reduce the drive to return to a state of homeostasis (Hull, 1943). (3) Theorists who support an Arousal approach believe that humans are motivated by stimulation and people develop an optimal level of stimulus tension; whereas, task performances may suffer if the level is too high such as severe test anxiety or even too low such as boredom
The author trusts that all humans have some level of motivation as long as they exist. In turn, there are several well-known classic approaches that consider motivation such as instinct, drive reduction, arousal, incentive, and humanistic approaches. It is beyond the scope of this paper to describe all in detail, but a brief synopsis of each follows: (1) Instinct approach theorists suggest that humans have many diverse instincts that are biologically determined and cause innate patterns of behaviors such as reproducing, territorial protection, curiosity, acquisition, and fight, flight or freeze to name a few (McDougall, 1908). (2) Drive-reduction theory proposes that individuals have needs that are essential for survival and this need cause a tension to act called a drive. These drives entail the primary drives for physical needs (water and food) and the acquired drives learned through experience or conditioning (need for money or social approval); whereas, one must meet the need to return to a state of homeostasis (Hull, 1943). (3) Theorists who support an Arousal approach believe that humans are motivated by stimulation and people develop an optimal level of stimulus tension; whereas, task performances may suffer if the level is too high such as severe test anxiety or even too low such as boredom (Teigen, 1994). (4) Incentive
Keller, John M. (2006). What Are the Elements of Learner Motivation? Retrieved July 4, 2011
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. New York: Plenum
Psychology test do not have to be a stressful thing; test scores can go up with just a few changes by the professor. In Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, Daniel H. Pink explains that Motivation 3.0 Autonomy is giving a person the freedom to do things in their own way which produces better result because Motivation 3.0 “presumes that people want to be accountable-and making sure they have control over their task, their time, their technique, and their team in the most effective pathway to the destination” (105). Psychology professors should consider giving their students more autonomy with regards to test taking so that the students can choose the method that best fits their learning style. Professors can do this by giving the students options on what style of test they want, where they would like to take it, and how long would best fit them.
What is motivation? According to text, motivation is defined as a set of factors that activate, direct, and maintain behavior, usually toward a certain goal. Motivation is the energy that makes us do things: this is a result of our individual needs being satisfied so that we have inspiration to complete the mission. These needs vary from person to person as everybody has their individual needs to motivate themselves. Depending on how motivated we are, it may further determine the effort we put into our work and therefore increase the standard of the productivity. There have been a wide variety of theories about motivation developed over the years. Several are drive-reduction theory, arousal theory, psychosocial (both incentive and cognitive) theory, and Maslow’s H...
Motivation is key in the workplace. It is developed from the collaboration of both conscious and unconscious principles such as the strength of desire or need, motivating force or reward estimation of the objective, and desires of the person and of his or her peers/co-workers. These elements are the reasons one has for carrying on a specific way. An illustration is an understudy that invests additional energy contemplating for a test since he or she needs a superior review in the class. The Inside and outside principles that animate want and vitality in individuals to be constantly intrigued and centered around their work, part or subject, or to try to achieve an objective.
Mullins (2002) classifies motivation into Intrinsic and Extrinsic types. Intrinsic motivation involves psychological rewards to enhance job satisfaction, such as the opportunity to use one's ability, a sense of achievement, receiving appreciation and positive recognition or being treated in a considerate manner (Mullins, 2002:P490). Such methods ensure employees are constantly motivated while being engaged in activities that are enjoyable and rewarding.
It is first important to understand how motivation works in the classroom. There are infinite procedures teachers use to achieve desired effects from their students, but there are general patterns these motivational tools follow. In order for teachers to communicate with their students, they must identify with their needs on an individual basis (Gawel, 1997). This proposal is much akin to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, which states five basic needs that must be met in order to achieve full motivation. These needs, in ascending order, are as follows: physiological, security, love and belongingness, esteem and self-respect, and self-actualization (Gawel, 1997). Each of these needs details a very important issue in motivation inside the classroom and out.
Motivation is taking on a whole new world then it once did, it is not only taking on people to do small personal tasks like quitting smoking, but instead people are starting to re...
The layman’s view of motivation is defined has the action whereby one is given a reason or purpose to complete an objective with more zeal. This in itself is not something new, but rather a method that has been applied for an immeasurable number years, possibly before it was even defined, classified
Linnenbrink, E. A. & Pintrich, P. R. (2002). Motivation as an enabler for success. School Psychology Review, 31 (3), 313-327