Editing Motivation (section)

== Definition, measurement, and semantic field ==
Motivation is often understood as an internal state or force that propels individuals to engage and persist in goal-directed behavior.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Hagger|Chatzisarantis|2005|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=hieFlYy4HIYC&pg=PA99 99–101]}} |2={{harvnb|Brehm|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=1lYOAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA131 131]}} |3={{harvnb|Helms|2000|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/management/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/motivation-and-motivation-theory lead section]}} }}</ref> Motivational states explain why people or animals initiate, continue, or terminate a certain behavior at a particular time.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Filipp|2002|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/medicine/psychology/psychology-and-psychiatry/motivation Motivation]}} |2={{harvnb|Kazdin|2000|pp=[https://www.apa.org/pubs/books/4600100 314–315]}} |3={{harvnb|Helms|2000|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/management/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/motivation-and-motivation-theory lead section]}} }}</ref> Motivational states are characterized by the [[goal]] they aim for, as well as the intensity and duration of the effort devoted to the goal.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Hagger|Chatzisarantis|2005|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=hieFlYy4HIYC&pg=PA99 99–101]}} |2={{harvnb|Nicholson|1998|loc=Motivation|p=330}} }}</ref> Motivational states have different degrees of strength. If a state has a high degree then it is more likely to influence behavior than if it has a low degree.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Mele|2003|pp=1, 4}} |2={{harvnb|Fischer|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=t0PZ3yjTuX0C&pg=PA126 126]}} |3={{harvnb|Solomon|2006|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=7qJ9OswteHAC&pg=PA92 92]}} }}</ref> Motivation contrasts with [[amotivation]], which is a lack of interest in a certain activity or a resistance to it.<ref name="auto">{{harvnb|Brehm|2014|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=1lYOAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA131 131–132]}}</ref> In a slightly different sense, the word "motivation" can also refer to the act of motivating someone and to a reason or goal for doing something.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|MW staff|2023}} |2={{harvnb|HC staff|2022}} }}</ref> It comes from the [[Latin]] term {{lang|la|movere}} (to move).<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Brehm|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=1lYOAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA131 131]}} |2={{harvnb|Helms|2000|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/management/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/motivation-and-motivation-theory lead section]}} }}</ref>

The [[tradition]]al [[Academic discipline|discipline]] studying motivation is psychology. It investigates how motivation arises, which factors influence it, and what effects it has.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Brehm|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=1lYOAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA131 131]}} |2={{harvnb|Cofer|Petri|2023|loc=§The study of motivation}} }}</ref> Motivation science is a more recent field of inquiry focused on an integrative approach that tries to link insights from different subdisciplines.<ref>{{harvnb|Shah|Gardner|2013|p=xi}}</ref> Neurology is interested in the underlying neurological mechanisms, such as the involved brain areas and [[neurotransmitter]]s.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Robbins|Everitt|1996|pp=228–229}} |2={{harvnb|Kim|2013|pp=1–2}} }}</ref> Philosophy aims to clarify the nature of motivation and understand its relation to other concepts.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Mele|2005|p=243}} |2={{harvnb|Miller|2008|pp=222–223}} |3={{harvnb|Cofer|Petri|2023|loc=§The study of motivation}} |4={{harvnb|Mele|2003|p=1}} }}</ref>

Motivation is not directly observable but has to be inferred from other characteristics.<ref name="auto8">{{harvnb|Nicholson|1998|loc=Motivation|p=330}}</ref> There are different ways to do so and measure it. The most common approach is to rely on self-reports and use [[questionnaires]]. They can include direct questions like "how motivated are you?" but may also inquire about additional factors in relation to the goals, feelings, and effort invested in a particular activity.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Touré-Tillery|Fishbach|2014|pp=328–329}} |2={{harvnb|Mubeen|Reid|2014|pp=133}} }}</ref> Another approach is based on external observation of the individual. This can concern studying behavioral changes but may also include additional methods like measuring [[brain activity]] and skin conductance.<ref>{{harvnb|Touré-Tillery|Fishbach|2014|pp=328–329}}</ref>

=== Academic definitions ===
Many academic definitions of motivation have been proposed but there is little consensus on its precise characterization.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=263}} |2={{harvnb|Pinder|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9RoKBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 10]}} |3={{harvnb|Helms|2000|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/management/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/motivation-and-motivation-theory lead section]}} |4={{harvnb|Golembiewski|2000|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=aOyYDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA19 19–20]}} |5={{harvnb|Merrick|Maher|2009|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=JaYOjNi7ZkkC&pg=PA17 17]}} }}</ref> This is partly because motivation is a complex phenomenon with many aspects and different definitions often focus on different aspects.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Pinder|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9RoKBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 10]}} |2={{harvnb|Helms|2000|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/management/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/motivation-and-motivation-theory lead section]}} }}</ref> Some definitions emphasize internal factors. This can involve psychological aspects in relation to desires and [[Volition (psychology)|volitions]] or physiological aspects regarding physical needs.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=263–264}} |2={{harvnb|Pinder|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9RoKBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 10]}} }}</ref> For example, [[John Dewey]] and [[Abraham Maslow]] use a psychological perspective to understand motivation as a form of desire<ref>{{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=273}}</ref> while Jackson Beatty and [[Charles Ransom Gallistel]] see it as a physical process akin to hunger and thirst.<ref>{{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=274}}</ref>

Some definitions stress the continuity between human and animal motivation, but others draw a clear distinction between the two. This is often emphasized by the idea that human agents act for reasons and are not mechanistically driven to follow their strongest impulse.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Miller|2008|p=244}} |2={{harvnb|Cofer|Petri|2023|loc=[https://www.britannica.com/topic/motivation lead section]}} }}</ref>  A closely related disagreement concerns the role of [[awareness]] and [[rationality]]. Definitions emphasizing this aspect understand motivation as a mostly conscious process of rationally considering the most appropriate behavior. Another perspective emphasizes the multitude of unconscious and subconscious factors responsible.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Pinder|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9RoKBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 10]}} |2={{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=264}} }}</ref>

Other definitions characterize motivation as a form of [[arousal]] that provides energy to direct and maintain behavior.<ref>{{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=264}}</ref> For instance, K. B. Madsen sees motivation as "the 'driving force' behind behavior" while Elliott S. Vatenstein and Roderick Wong emphasize that motivation leads to goal-oriented behavior that is interested in consequences.<ref>{{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=277–278}}</ref> The role of goals in motivation is sometimes paired with the claim that it leads to flexible behavior in contrast to blind reflexes or fixed [[stimulus-response]] patterns. This is based on the idea that individuals use means to bring about the goal and are flexible in regard to what means they employ.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=277–278}} |2={{harvnb|Mele|2003|p=7}} }}</ref> According to this view, the feeding behavior of rats is based on motivation since they can learn to traverse through complicated mazes to satisfy their hunger, which is not the case for the stimulus-bound feeding behavior of flies.<ref>{{harvnb|Mele|2003|p=7}}</ref>

Some psychologists define motivation as a temporary and reversible process.<ref name="auto5">{{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=267, 282}}</ref> For example, Robert A. Hinde and John Alcock see it as a transitory state that affects responsiveness to stimuli.<ref>{{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=282}}</ref> This approach makes it possible to contrast motivation with phenomena like learning which bring about permanent behavioral changes.<ref name="auto5"/>

Another approach is to provide a very broad characterization to cover many different aspects of motivation. This often results in very long definitions by including many of the factors listed above.<ref>{{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=267}}</ref> The multitude of definitions and the lack of consensus have prompted some theorists, like psychologists B. N. Bunnell and Donald A. Dewsbury, to doubt that the concept of motivation is theoretically useful and to see it instead as a mere hypothetical construct.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Pinder|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9RoKBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 10]}} |2={{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=264, 267, 286}} }}</ref>

=== Semantic field ===
The term "motivation" is closely related to the term "motive" and the two terms are often used as synonyms.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|O'Shaughnessy|2012|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=mh9HEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA40 40]}} |2={{harvnb|Kleinginna|Kleinginna|1981|pp=263, 273}} }}</ref> However, some theorists distinguish their precise meanings as technical terms. For example, psychologist Andrea Fuchs understands motivation as the "sum of separate motives".<ref>{{harvnb|Fuchs|2008|p=967|loc=Motivation}}</ref> According to psychologist [[Ruth Kanfer]], motives are stable dispositional tendencies that contrast with the dynamic nature of motivation as a fluctuating internal state.<ref name="auto8"/>

Motivation is closely related to [[ability]], effort, and [[Action (philosophy)|action]].<ref name="auto1">{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Levine|Moreland|2008|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=uyh6AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA63 63]}} |2={{harvnb|Mills|Mills|Bratton|Forshaw|2006|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=eTpoNm5U_JwC&pg=PA208 208]}} }}</ref> An ability is a power to perform an action, like the ability to walk or to write. Individuals can have abilities without exercising them.<ref>{{harvnb|Maier|2022|loc=[https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/abilities/ lead section, §1.2 Demarcating abilities]}}</ref> They are more likely to be motivated to do something if they have the ability to do it, but having an ability is not a requirement and it is possible to be motivated while lacking the corresponding ability.<ref>{{multiref |1={{harvnb|Brehm|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=1lYOAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA131 131]}} |2={{harvnb|Chen|2019|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=OmahDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA207 207]}} }}</ref> Effort is the physical and [[mental energy]] invested when exercising an ability.<ref>{{harvnb|Harris|2017|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=SgUqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA183 183]}}</ref> It depends on motivation and high motivation is associated with high effort.<ref>{{harvnb|Williams|2007|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=Z6IeBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA15 15]}}</ref> The quality of the resulting performance depends on the ability, effort, and motivation.<ref name="auto1"/> Motivation to perform an action can be present even if the action is not executed. This is the case, for instance, if there is a stronger motivation to engage in a different action at the same time.<ref>{{harvnb|Moore|Isen|1990|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=H8iyRo7raTgC&pg=PA101 101]}}</ref>