5 Steps to a 5 AP Psychology, 2010-2011 Edition - Laura Lincoln Maitland [96]
Incentive Theory
Primary motives push us to satisfy our biologic needs. But we are also pulled by environmental factors, which have little to do with biology. An incentive is a positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior, pulling us toward a goal. Secondary motives, motives we learn to desire, are learned through society’s pull. Getting a 5 on the AP Psychology examination is an incentive that motivates you to read this book.
Arousal Theory
What explains people’s needs to climb mountains, bungee jump, or ride roller coasters? Arousal is the level of alertness, wakefulness, and activation caused by activity in the central nervous system. The optimal level of arousal varies with the person and the activity. The Yerkes-Dodson law states that we usually perform most activities best when moderately aroused, and efficiency of performance is usually lower when arousal is either low or high. We tend to perform difficult or newly learned tasks better at a lower level of arousal, but we tend to perform very easy or well-learned tasks at a higher level of arousal. When first learning to drive a car, we will drive best if we are not anxious about our performance. Years later, we may need the radio on while we are driving to keep us aroused for our best performance.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Humanistic psychologist Abraham Maslow categorized needs then arranged them in order of priority, starting with powerful physiological needs, such as the needs for food and water. His hierarchy is often pictured as a pyramid (Figure 12.1). Maslow agreed with Hull that basic biological needs to satisfy hunger and thirst must be met first, followed by our safety needs to feel safe, secure, and stable in a world that is organized and predictable. When our stomachs are growling because we are hungry and homeless, it is unlikely that our greatest motivation will be to get a high grade on a test. When our needs for food, drink, shelter, and safety have been met, we are motivated to meet our belongingness and love needs, to love and be loved, to be accepted by others and considered part of a group, such as a family, and to avoid loneliness and alienation. This need is followed by esteem needs for self-esteem, achievement, competence, and independence; and need for recognition and respect from others. According to Maslow, few people reach the highest levels of self-actualization, which is achievement of all of our potentials, and transcendence, which is spiritual fulfillment. Although this theory is attractive, we do not always place our highest priority on meeting lower-level needs. Political activists go on hunger strikes, soldiers sacrifice their lives, parents go without food in order to feed their children. Scientific evidence does not support this theory.
Figure 12.1 Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
Physiological Motives
Hunger
Why do you eat? You eat when you feel hungry because your stomach is contracting or your blood sugar is low, but you also eat because you love the taste of a particular food, and because you are with friends or family who are eating. Our eating behavior is influenced by biological, social, and cultural factors.
Early research indicated that stomach contractions caused hunger. Yet even people and other animals who have had their stomachs removed still experience hunger. Recent research has revealed receptor cells in the stomach that detect food in the stomach and send neural impulses along the vagus nerve to our brain, reducing our level of hunger.
Hunger and Hormones
Secretion of the hormone cholecystokinin by the small intestine