2.4 Motivation Project_Brittany ONeal by B.ONeal

Identify which theory you think would be most helpful in maintaining your motivation. Discuss how this theory can be used to support your commitment to your goals

boneal18 — 2025-06-16 06:59:47 UTC

I think Abraham Maslow's Humanistic Theory is the most comprehensive theory that touches upon every aspect of what I believe is important in having a happily creative and fulfilling life. I am seeing the effects first hand of not having basic needs met and he is absolutely right. It's difficult to think about love when you aren't feeling like you have a stable foundation to build from. Having high self esteem is important when looking for a partner to share your life with.

Behavioral Theory

boneal18 — 2025-06-16 07:00:00 UTC

The Behavioral Theory was heavily influenced by B.F. Skinner. Skinner studied the observable causes of human behavior; paying close attention to how rewards and consequences influence our motivation to continue a task. According to Skinner, rewards are important because they offer a positive consequence and good feelings thus reinforcing our behaviors. Skinner introduced a new term into the Law of Effect – Reinforcement. Behavior that is reinforced tends to be repeated (i.e., strengthened); behavior that is not reinforced tends to die out or be extinguished (i.e., weakened). “Operant Conditioning: What It Is, How It Works, and Examples By Saul McLeod.” PhD Updated On, vol. 17. Skinner proved his theories by putting rats into a "Skinners Box" which had an electrified grid that would inflict a harsh punishment on the rat for unwanted behaviors and reinforce good behaviors by rewarding them. Skinner's experiment taught the rat how to turn on a light and push a lever so it could avoid electrocution by rewarding the rat with an escape route.

Cognitive Theory

boneal18 — 2025-06-16 07:00:03 UTC

Jean Piaget has had a significant impact on the field of psychology offering his theory of cognitive development, shaping how we understand learning. Cognitive Theory suggests that a person’s perception is responsible for how they react to events in life. The way we interpret life is how our reactions are formed and shaped. Piaget offers a way to organize our thoughts and reactions by using a schema. A schema is our personal beliefs in how we interpret the world through our past experiences; how did a situation make us think, how did we feel, how did those feelings influence our behavior and what was the outcome? Piaget suggests that if we have positive thoughts about an event, we will have positive feelings which will promote positive behaviors, thus

producing a positive outcome. Piaget teaches us that our interpretations cause reactions so reframing our thoughts can help to change our schemas ultimately lending to a positive outcome in every situation by generating positive thoughts.

Humanistic Theory

boneal18 — 2025-06-16 07:00:07 UTC

The Humanistic Theory was offered to psychology in 1943 by Abraham Maslow. Maslow's findings tell us that in order to achieve personal growth, basic needs must be met. Maslow organizes his perception of basic needs as follows. At the foundation we must fulfill physiological needs such as food, shelter, clothing, sex and water. Once we have these needs fulfilled we focus on safety which is having a place to live and work to support ourselves. When we have a home we can then look for love and belonging by becoming part of a group or falling in love. After connecting with others we then work on self-esteem through finding ways to be motivated about life through things like recognition through our accomplishments and gaining confidence in completing goals. Finally after having a good grasp on all of these things we may attain self actualization where we are free to be creative to do what we want.

Social Theory

boneal18 — 2025-06-16 07:00:10 UTC

Albert Bandura was a psychologist who offered profound insight to what is now known as Social Theory. Social Theory is a belief that maintains that we learn through observation of the world around us. Bandura suggests four stages of interpreting information to show wether a new behavior has been learned or not including attention, retention, reproduction and the motivation to learn a new behavior. Bandura offers that people can learn a new behavior by simply observing it. After an observation, a person is likely to make assumptions about possible incentives or consequences which will motivate someone to mimic the behavior or not. Bandura points out an interesting fact, that our social connections and environments influence our desire to want to learn a new behavior.

Identify 2 motivation techniques from the week 2 Motivation textbook (pages 16-17). Provide an example of how each technique can be used to increase your motivation during your academic journey.

boneal18 — 2025-06-16 07:38:21 UTC

There are many motivation techniques that I will put to use in my academic journey. I think the most important technique is breaking down tasks. Time management can be easier to handle when setting aside an ample amount of time to complete projects. Using an app like Calendly can be especially helpful in setting reminders and organizing time for every aspect of this course. I can break down my homework into hour long slots and set a timer for how much time is spent working in each module while also setting aside time for things like participating in Clubs and reading the updated content on the LMS and student affairs site.

Secondly, having a positive attitude for me is 90% of my motivation. I can maintain a positive attitude through giving myself plenty of time to complete coursework and engaging with my peers and offering helpful insight during class meetings are great ways to keep a happy demeanor throughout class. Giving each assignment galant effort will produce a good feeling that I can carry into the next assignment. Looking over all of the work I have completed is another way to boost self-esteem and feel happily motivated to progress forward.