Title: 20 Most Popular Theories of Motivation in Psychology
Headings: 20 Most Popular Theories of Motivation in Psychology
20 Most Popular Theories of Motivation in Psychology
This Article Contains:
What is Motivation Psychology?
Theories of Motivation
Content Theories of Motivation
Maslow’s theory of the hierarchy of needs
Alderfer’s ERG theory
McClelland’s achievement motivation theory
Immanuel Kant
Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory
Process Theories of Motivation
Reinforcement theory
Adams’ equity theory of motivation
Vroom’s expectancy theory
Locke’s goal-setting theory
Cognitive Theories of Motivation
Motivational Theories in Business
Theory X and Theory Y
Theory Z
The Hawthorne Effect
Motivational Theories in Sports Psychology
Optimal functioning hypothesis
Hull–Spence drive theory
Arousal-biased competition theory
Two memory systems theory
Processing efficiency theory
Textbooks on Motivation
1. Understanding Motivation and Emotion – Johnmarshall Reeve
2. Motivation: Theories and Principles – Robert C. Beck
3. Motivation – Lambert Deckers
4. Motivation and Emotion Evolutionary Physiological, Developmental, and Social Perspectives – Denys A. deCatanzaro
5. Motivation: A Biosocial and Cognitive Integration of Motivation and Emotion – Eva Dreikus Ferguson
6. Human Motivation – Robert E. Franken
7. The Psychology of Action: Linking Cognition and Motivation to Behavior – Peter M. Gollwitzer and John Bargh
8. Motivation and Self-Regulation ccross the Life Span – Jutta Heckhausen and Carol S. Dweck
9. Reclaiming Cognition: The Primacy of Action, Intention, and Emotion (Journal of Consciousness Studies) – Rafael Nunez and Walter J. Freeman
10. Motivation: Theory, Research, and Applications – Herbert L. Petri and John M. Govern
11. Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation: The Search for Optimal Motivation and Performance – Carol Sansone and Judith M. Harackiewicz
12. Current Directions in Motivation and Emotion – Association for Psychological Science and Kennon Sheldon
13. The Psychobiology of Human Motivation (Psychology Focus) – Hugh Wagner
A Take-Home Message
References
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Content: Here a motive is understood as an internal disposition that pushes an individual toward a desired end-state where the motive is satisfied, and a goal is defined as the cognitive representation of the desired outcome that an individual attempts to achieve. While a goal guides a behavior that results in achieving it, an incentive is an anticipated feature of the environment that pulls an individual toward or away from a goal. Incentives usually enhance motivation for goal achievement. Emotions act like motives as well. They motivate an individual in a coordinated fashion along multiple channels of affect, physiology, and behavior to adapt to significant environmental changes. See our discussion of the motivation cycle and process in the blog post entitled What is Motivation. Theories of Motivation
Theories of motivation are often separated into content theories and process theories. In short, content theories explain what motivation is, and process theories describe how motivation occurs. There are also a large number of cognitive theories that relate to motivation and explain how our way of thinking and perceiving ourselves and the world around us can influence our motives. From self-concept, dissonance and mindset to values, orientation and perceived control, these theories explain how our preference toward certain mental constructs can increase or impair our ability to take goal-directed action.