Final Post.

Motivation is such a well-known word and topic yet it is extremely challenging and complex. This course was an excellent overview of motivation ranging from its definition, the sources of motivation, the emotions and desires and goals that are associated with motivation, and how all the aspects of motivation are interconnected and interrelated. In the beginning of the course we learned about the basic needs, such as hunger and thirst, that motivated our decisions and actions and as this course progressed so did the information that we learned. We learned about how emotions influence our motivation, how even though everyone is different we all share the same basic instincts, needs and wants, about addictions, and how complex the subject of motivation is. It was interesting to learn how motivation is influenced by so many factors and that so many factors influence motivation in turn.

One of my favorite parts of this course was learning about mate selection. The study we learned about in class about how men prefer women when they are hungrier was fascinating. It was interesting hearing the results of the study and how simple variables can change a person's answers. The videos we watched about how people act differently when they were on the treadmill when they were given different instructions was also interesting. Instincts for mate selection is innate and female and male genders place higher value on different qualities. For example, women want good and stable financial prospects in a mate because they do not want to have children with someone who is not financially stable. This makes sense because women are the ones who are left to raise the child if the father runs off. It was also interesting to learn how different animal species have special techniques to attract members of the opposite sex. While everyone has different preferences in a significant other we all have some of the same characteristics and qualities that we value as important. Mate selection is important in that it keeps the species of animals and humans reproducing and continuing to occupy the world. Motivation is the key to survival and without it the world about diminish.