Motivation: Final Post

Wow! This class went by so quickly and yet it left my head filled with information. I enjoyed each chapter and the knowledge in each one. It is difficult to sum up in a few short paragraphs what I have learned in this class.

Did you ever wonder why we go to school? Did you ever ask yourself why a teacher tests a student? There is motive for why we engage in these behaviors. I learned that a motive can be a need, want, desire or interest that pushes us in a particular direction. You can call it whatever you want: a belief, instinct, interest, need or a drive but it is motivation that causes us to take action.

Certain theories within the field of motivation have especially stood out to me and I thorouly enjoyed reading about them. The Instinct Theory teaches us that people are motivated to behave in a certain way because evolution has programmed us to do so. This theory helps to explain why a mother will sit up all night to comfort her sick or crying child. It is her instincts that tell her to do so. The Incentive Theory of Motivation tells us that people are motivated to do certain things because there are external rewards involved. The reward for completing college is a degree and a better, higher paying job. The Drive Theory is when people are motivated to take action to reduce internal tension that may be caused by an unmet need. Homeostasis is a state of physiological equilibrium that we are constantly trying to achieve. I think this goes hand in had with the Drive Theory. For example, when we are hungry we experience a physical discomfort. We are then motivated to find food and eat it. Eating the food causes a reduction in the physical tension and equilibrium is restored...YAY!! Finally, the Arousal Theory suggests that people take action to either decrease or increase levels of arousal. For instance, when our levels of arousal are too high, we look for ways to relax such as yoga or meditation.

I can honestly say that I truly enjoyed the textbook for this class. I think I will hold on to it for a while. As a first time blogger, I think I handled it quite well. I enjoyed sharing my thoughts about the class with others and looked forward to reading posts from everyone. The videos in people's posts were very interesting. I look forward to blogging in the future. As for those of you in the class who stated that you have never blogged before...I couldn't tell. Stay focused on your goals. Best wishes to all!!