PSYO 1012 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Electrodermal Activity, Ovulation, Autonomic Nervous System
4 Jul 2018
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Lesson 6: Motivation & Emotion
Chapter 11
Define motivation, drives, needs and incentives
Motivation: the urge to move toward one’s goals, whatever they may be.
-Needs: states of cellular or bodily deficiency that compel drives.
oThey are inherently biological.
Water, food, and oxygen.
-Drives: the perceived states of tension that occur when our bodies are deficient in some
need.
oSuch deficiency creates a drive to alleviate the state.
-Incentive: any external object or event that motivates behaviour.
oCome from the environment.
Compare the different theories of motivation
The evolutionary model: looks at internal drives to explain why people do what they do.
- The major motives all involve basic survival and reproduction needs and drives
oHunger, thirst, body temperature regulation, oxygen, and sex.
- Sexual behaviour in humans is enhanced at times when the chance of conception is most
likely.
- Desires, wants, and needs have been shaped over the course of evolution to guide
behaviour either toward adaptive or away from maladaptive actions.
-Instinct: an inherited behavioural tendency of a species. Implies that internal drives are
constant amongst members of a species because they serve adaptive functions for
survival.
- We do what we want in order to please ourselves or to remove ourselves from an
undesirable state.
The drive reduction model: when our physiological systems are out of balance or depleted, we
are driven to reduce this depleted state.
- Drive is the perceived internal state of tension that arises when our bodies are lacking in
some basic physiological capacity.
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-Homeostasis: the idea of maintaining physiological balance.
-Set point: the ideal fixed setting of a particular physiological system.
oThere are set points for hunger, thirst, respiration, etc.
- Our bodies must have sensors that detect its current state and any changes that cause it to
deviate from the set point. Most of the sensors are located in the brain and trigger
mechanisms that motivate us to take action.
The optimal arousal model: we function best at an optimal level of arousal.
- Both low arousal and high arousal lead to poor performance, whereas moderate levels of
arousal lead to optimal performance.
- Suggests that humans are motivated to be in situations that are neither too stimulating nor
not stimulating enough.
- Long-term sensory deprivation in rats actually shrinks the brain regions most involved in
the senses that have been deprived (another exam of the plasticity of the brain).
-Flow: the concept that people perform best and are most creative when they are optimally
challenged relative to their abilities.
The hierarchical model: combines drives and incentives.
- Needs range from the most basic physiological necessities to the highest, most
psychological needs for growth and fulfillment.
- Bottom to top:
oPhysiological needs: food, water, oxygen, body temperature.
oSafety needs: physical security, stability, dependency, protection, and freedom
from threats.
oLove and belongingness needs: desire for friendship, sex, a mate, children, and to
belong to a family or social group.
oEsteem needs: appreciate oneself and one’s worth and to be appreciated and
respected by others.
oSelf-actualization: the full realization of one’s potentials and abilities in life.
A modified model replaces the self-actualization with three types of
reproductive goals: acquiring a mate, retaining a mate, and parenting. The
levels of self-actualization overlap and can be activated when necessary.
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find more resources at oneclass.com
Describe the biological, psychological, and cultural influences on hunger and feeding
Biology of when we eat: internal signals control the desire to eat or stop eating.
- Hunger has four biological components: the stomach, the blood, the brain, and hormones
and neurochemicals.
- The most important source of energy for the body is cellular glucose which is a simple
sugar in the blood that provides energy for cells throughout the body, including the brain.
- Some organs can only use glucose even though fat and protein provide their own forms
of energy.
- If our blood sugar level drops, the hypothalamus triggers the drive to obtain food.
- Certain regions lack an effective blood brain barrier, which enable neurons to detect
blood-born nutrient, so the hypothalamus acts as hunger’s sensory detector.
-The lateral hypothalamus: considered one of the main hunger centres in the
hypothalamus. Damage to this area leads to a reduction in feeding.
-The ventromedial hypothalamus: involved in the complementary role of promoting
satiety. Destruction of this area leads to overfeeding and weight gain. Visceral organs
grow more cells in the absence of ventromedial input.
oInhibits the parasympathetic nervous system, so the rest and digest activities of
the visceral organs become more pronounced.
- Neuropeptide Y, orexin, ghrelin, melanin, and the endocannabinoids all stimulate
feeding.
oNPY is released by the hypothalamus when hungry and stimulates appetite.
oGhrelin is a hormone released from the digestive system where levels rise when
we are hungry and fall after we eat.
oEndocannabinoids are naturally occurring neurochemicals that can increase
appetite.
- Insulin, leptin, peptide YY, and cholecystokinin (CCK) are hormones that suppress
appetite.
oRising glucose levels stimulate insulin production in the pancreas where insulin
transports glucose out of the blood and into the cells.
Psychology of what we eat: what we eat is shaped by nature and nurture.
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find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Motivation: the urge to move toward one"s goals, whatever they may be. Needs: states of cellular or bodily deficiency that compel drives: they are inherently biological. Drives: the perceived states of tension that occur when our bodies are deficient in some need: such deficiency creates a drive to alleviate the state. Incentive: any external object or event that motivates behaviour: come from the environment. The evolutionary model: looks at internal drives to explain why people do what they do. The major motives all involve basic survival and reproduction needs and drives: hunger, thirst, body temperature regulation, oxygen, and sex. Sexual behaviour in humans is enhanced at times when the chance of conception is most likely. Desires, wants, and needs have been shaped over the course of evolution to guide behaviour either toward adaptive or away from maladaptive actions. Instinct: an inherited behavioural tendency of a species.
