Motivation

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Definition

• Motivation is that which gets a behavior started and keeps it going ([1])

• A need or desir to reinforce a behavior or to orient it towards a goal (Myers)

Often, on makes a distinction between intrinsic motivation (desire to do something for personal, internal reasons) and extrinsic motivation (seek recompensation and avoid punishement), but the two are very much linked and difficult to separate.

• See also self-efficacy theory, flow theory

A short (chaotic) overview

This is just an outline, based on Motivation by Marilla Svinicki)

Drive

Drive theories are behaviorist and/or [[cognitivism|cognitivist] in nature and explain behavior as as response to psychological and social needs. Regarding instruction, learners in these models are rather passive and the environment (materials, teachers, etc.) in control.

Needs and goals

Needs are cognitively elaborated into concrete motivational goals and means-end structures. Being motivated means striving for goals which are by definition not yet realized at the moment that they are formulated or expresses (Nuttin, 1980). The individuals hopes and expects to reach them at a certain moment in time as a consequece of his actions.

In other words, goals and the anticipated outcome are the source of motivation. Good goals are: clear, personally relevant, proximal, progress can be seen, interim successes are possible.

One can distinguis between learning goals (desire to be able to master a task) and perfomance goals (desire to appear competent or at least better than the others)

Emergent motivation

• Motivation comes from engaging in the task itself
• Motivation comes from new goals that arise as a consequence of interaction with the environment
• Flow (complete involvement)

Self

For Greenwald (1982), the 'self' becomes involved in an activity in three conditions:

1. Social evaluation (I want to please the crowd)
2. Self-evaluation (intrinsic motivation)
3. Personal values/interests/goals.

Human information processing

Warr (????) describes motivation as a cognitive process that concerns future planned actions and that can be based on a set of reasons:

• Intrinsic desirability of immediate results
• Intrinsic desirability of further outcome
• Social comparison
• Social preausre
• Career and development aims
• Expected subjective probability of a "project"
• Habits
• Other current desires and potential actions
• The structure of the action

Attribution

How does the actor/learner explain what happens to him ? How does he explain the outcome (e.g. success and failure). Dimensions of causes that learners attribute can be:

• internal / external cause:
  • e.g. talent, effort, intellectual power, learning strategy vs. difficulty of the task, competence of the teacher, etc.
• stable / transitory (instable, variable)
  • permanent vs. random or changing because of various external factors
• controllable / not controllable
  • students believes that can do something about it.
• local / global
• intentional / non-intentional

Of course the pedagogical design and the teacher can influence these perceptions. In empirical studies these factors also show up in combinations related to given issues and affect. Philipp Dessus (2001) summarizes Crahay, 1999, p. 284 and Archambault & Chouinard, 1996, p. 110):

David G. Myers : Psychologie Ed De Boeck 1998 David G. Myers : Psychologie Ed De Boeck 1998

Location	Stability	Control	Issues	Affects
Internal	stable	Controllable	Learning strategy	Gratitude/anger
Internal	stable	not controllable	intellectual Aptitudes	Proudness/Shame, despair
Internal	instable	Controllable	Effort	Proudness Culpability
Internal	instable	not controllable	Sickness
External	stable	Controllable	Support courses (?)
External	stable	not controllable	Level of difficulty, program	Disinterest, Anger
External	instable	Controllable	Perceptions of the teacher
External	instable	not controllable	Chance, Affective state of the teacher	Gratefulness, surprise, resignation

Expectancy/value theory

• Motivation increases as expectation to succeed and value of task increase.
• Ways to influence expectancy for success
• Ways to influence value of task

Self-determination theory

• Motivation equals the degree of perceived control. Influencing factors are: choices, impositions by others through threats or controlling statements or being watched, getting feedback, getting extrinsic rewards

Complex constructs

Konrad (2005) argues that in an educational context we should complete sociological, psychological and interactional models with a decision making approach where “learners are seen as decision makers, who more or less consciously analyse their past experiences, current lifeand work situation, and future expectations, and base their decisions to participate or not on these complex elements which form the motivation structure.” (Konrad, 2005:7).

David G. Myers : Psychologie Ed De Boeck 1998

Model	Sociological	Psychological	Interactionist	Modern
Explanations sought from	External causes	Internal causes	Interaction of causes	Individual decision making
Key elements	Work, society, social class, opportunities, obstacles	Motives, traits, personality, interests	Socialisation, experiences, felt needs, relevance, expectancy	Images, values, feelings, stories
References	Lehtonen & Tuomisto 1972; Rinne & al. 1992	Boshier 1973; Garrison 1987	Rubenson 1979; Pintrich & Ruohotie 2000	Manninen 2004; Manninen & al. 2004

In any case, DSchneider believes that motivation has to be conceived as multi-dimensions phenomenon (a construct) influenced by various variables such as:

• Needs and desires
• Perceived utility of an activity. Does the learner thDavid G. Myers : Psychologie Ed De Boeck 1998ink that he could use outcomes ?
• Achievement: did the learner encounter positive experiences in the past, project positive ones in the future (e.g. see self-efficacy theory)
• Recognition by others and feedback provided by the teacher
• Task: Is the task itself interesting.
• Autonomy: Can the student set goals ? (See also: project-based learning

Motivation in education

Motivation ;)

• Motivation always has been a key variable in education:

• "Donnez à l'enfant le désir d'apprendre et... toute méthode lui sera bonne" (Rousseau dans l'Emile en 1762).

• “The success of a training program is largely contingent on the beneficiary's training motivation.” (Guerrero & Sire, 2000)

• According to Konrad (2005) “The general definition of 'motivation to learn' is 'an individual's desire to work towards a learningDavid G. Myers : Psychologie Ed De Boeck 1998 goal.' Ruohotie (2000:8)” but such definitions are not very operational and the instructional designer should rely on some model of motivation structure.

Measuring student task motivation through 3 dimensions ([Dessus])

1. Motivations regarding activities and subject matter
2. Self-estimation of competence to achieve
3. Estimation of control

What teachers can do to enhance motivation (Ames and Ames recommendations)

According to Marilla Svinicki, teachers, in order to increase student motivation, should:

• Reduce social comparison
• Increase involvement in learning
• Focus on effort by student
• Promote beliefs in competence
• Increase chances for success

How theories are used to design for motivation

• Behavior theory - use reinforcement and punishment
• Expectancy value theory - increase expectancy for success and raise value of task
• Attribution theory - get learner to focus on effort and controllable causes
• Goal theory - set reasonable, mastery-oriented goals
• Self-determination theory - give choices and control to learner

Motivation in regular training

to do ...

Motivation in vocational training

Guerrero & Sire (2000:3-4) again point out the complexity of motivation and single out self-efficacy and instrumentality as two key dimensions to study training motivation of french workers.

One of the definitions widely used in recent studies of training motivation (Baldwin et al., 1991; Facteau et al., 1995; Quinones, 1995) is that introduced by Noe in 1986 in the Academy of Management Review. It is inspired by American research on motivation at work (Campbell & Pritchard, 1976). Training motivation is described as "a specific desire of the trainee to learn the content of the training program". Other definitions refer to the effort exerted in training to learn the course contents (Hicks & Klimoski, 1987), along with Vroom's expectancies theory (1964). Accordingly, Mathieu et al. (1992) describe training motivation as "trainees' perceptions that doing well in a program would lead to better job performance and consequently to valued outcomes." Furthermore, several concepts have been used to describe training motivation. In addition to expectancies theories (Vroom 1964, Porter and Lawler 1968), authors have built upon the studies of Bandura (1977) on self-efficacy and Adams on equity (1965).

In a large-scale empirical study, Konrad (2005) studied the learning motivations of lower qualified workers using a multi-dimensional learning motivation scale that was based on the following concepts (categories). Values, i.e Alpha, Neutral, Beta refer to Dynamic concept analysis (Kontinen, 2002).

Concept	Alfa	Neutral	Beta
Individual characteristics:	Supportive	Neutral	Unsupportive
Training format:	Attractive	Neutral	Unattractive
Work complexity:	Complex	Neutral	Simple
Past learning experiences:	Positive	Neutral	Negative
Information & opportunity:	Easily available	Neutral	Unavailable
Attitudes & values:	Positive	Neutral	Negative
Motivation	High	Medium	Low
Current work & future expectations:	Motivating	Neutral	Demotivating
Support & incentives:	Easily available	Neutral	Unavailable
Expectancy & Valence:	Positive	Neutral	Negative

Results let to a typology of motivation according to 2 dimensions: Simple work/complex work situation and low/high motivation.

1. Climbers: Positive attitude towards training. Key motivation is advancement. There is support from the company.
2. Developers: Similar as climbers, but key motivation is to develop skills needed in current job. Past experiences with learning has been positive.
3. Drop-outs: Attitudes towards training are neutral (or unnessary). Work is simple and there is no possibility of advancement. This concerns most employees.
4. Refusers: Negative attitudes about training. Employees perform complex work and there is no possibility of advancement and support from the company

An important finding from this study was that Learning preferences identified by lower qualified workers across the countries (like learning by doing & learning from others) indicate that theoretical models such as shared expertise and cognitive apprenticeship (Bereiter & Scardamalia 1993; Lave & Wenger 1991) are suitable for this target group.}} (Konrad, 2005:22). The author also makes a connection to constructivism, i.e. knowledge as direct and social experience, and citing Resnik (1991) social processes as cognition.

"Broad exposure to ongoing practice ... is in effect a demonstration of the goals to which 'newcomers' expect and are expected to move. ... This more inclusive process of generating identities is both a result of, and a motivation for participation." (Lave 1991:71)

Thus, when an individual joins an eDavid G. Myers : Psychologie Ed De Boeck 1998xisting group of competent practitioners, they are motivated by membership of that group both to strengthen their identity as learners and, at least as importantly, to promote the success of the group. This process of mastering the virtuous circle of learning to learn is a central part of the process of successful adult learning. In a structured workplace, the role of the competent members is crucial, whether those with formal status (such as supervisors) or as informal leaders.

This analysis leads to the conclusion that where a group has sufficient autonomy to manage their own learning in order to contribute to the achievement of shared goals, motivation is likely to be enhanced. In particular, valuing such situated learning is an important process in promoting engagement in lifelong learning. To put it simply, success at learning is a self-fulfilling prophecy in that it encourages individuals to shape their identity as successful learners, irrespective of any previous lack of success, such as within formal learning processes at school or college.

(Konrad, 2005: 23)

In practical terms this means that situated motivation will be enhanced by the motivating potential of the instructional design. Adler (2001) suggests:

• The amount of autonomy provided.
• The degree to which students can identify with and find interesting a given learning task or set of tasks.
• Type and timing of the feedback provided.

Instructional design models

• ARCS
• Constructivist emotionally-oriented model

Motivation and Emotion

Motivation is linked to emotions, but emotions an related emotional design of instruction are yet another category of interest: Here is a citation from Asleitner (2000:169): "It is well known in the field of basic and applied research on education and psychology that cognitive, motivational, and emotional processes are related to the world in different ways. Cognitive processes concern the acquisition and representation of knowledge and have a representative relation to the world of objects and facts. Motivational processes refer to goal states of the organism and have an actional relation to the world. Emotional processes are based on the acceptance or rejection of objects and facts and have an evaluational relation to the world (Kuhl, 1986)"

• FEASP: "According to the F(ear)E(nvy)A(nger)S(ympathy)P(leasure)-approach for designing positive feeling instruction, the instructional designer has to analyze emotional problems before and during instruction (Astleitner, 2000: 175).

Links

• Motivation (by Mireille Linz, in french)
• Motivation by Marilla Svinicki

References

• Adler (2001). Adler R W et al (2001) 'Situated motivation: An empirical test in an accounting course,' Canadian Journal of Administrative Science, June, http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3981/is_200106/ai_n8999210

• Astleitner, Hermann, Designing Emotionally Sound Instruction: The FEASP-Approach, Instructional Science 28 (3): 169-198, May 2000 [ http://www.springerlink.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi:10.1023/A:1003893915778]

• Brehm, J. W., & Self, E. A. (1989). The intensity of motivation. Annual Review of Psychology, 40, 109-131.

• Dessus, Philippe (2001), La motivation en milieu scolaire, Document SAPEA, Séminaire d'analyse des pratiques d'enseignement/apprentissage, IUFM de GrenobleHTML

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• Guerrero, Sylvie & Bruno Sire (2000), Motivation To Train From Workers Perspective: Example Of French Companies, Les Notes du LIRHE, Université Toulouse I, note n° 318, Juillet 2000.

• J. Keller and T. Kopp, An Application of the ARCS Model of Motivational Design, in C. Reigeluth (ed.), Instructional Design Theories in Action, Erlbaum, Hillsdale, New Jersey, pp. 289-320, 1987.

• J. Keller, Motivational Design of Instruction, in C. Reigeluth (ed.), Instructional Design Theories and Models, Erlbaum, Hillsdale, New Jersey, pp. 383-434, 1983.

• Konrad, John (2005), Learning Motivation Of Lower Qualified Workers, Centre for Applied Research in Education, University of East Anglia. PDF, retrieved 17:42, 7 September 2006 (MEST).

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Article cited in citations

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• Campbell, J & Pritchard, R. 1976. « Motivation theory in industrial and organizational psychology », Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 3: 63-130, Rand McNally, Chicago.

• Facteau, J Dobbins, G Russell, J Ladd, R & Kudish, J. 1995. « The influence of general perceptions of the training environment on pretraining motivation and perceived training transfer », Journal of Management, 21/1: 1-25T

• Garrison, D. (1987), Dropout Prediction within a Broad Psychosocial Context: an Analysis of Boshier's Congruence Model. Adult Education Quarterly 37, 4, 212-222.

• Hicks, W & Klimoski, R. 1987. « Entry into training programs and its effects on training outcomes: a field experiment », Academy of Management Journal, 30/3: 542-552.

• Kontiainen, S. (ed.) 2002. Dynamic Concept Analysis (DCA). Integrating Information in Conceptual Models. University of Helsinki, Department of Education.

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• Fenouillet, F. (1996). Motivation et découragement. in A. Lieury (éd.). Manuel de psychologie de l'éducation et de la formation. Paris : Dunod, chap. 10. [Un résumé de Lieury & Fenouillet, 1996]

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• Lieury, A. & Fenouillet, F. (1996). Motivation et réussite scolaire. Paris : Dunod. [Ouvrage introductif à la motivation à l'école]

• Morissette, D. & Gingras, M. (1989). Enseigner des attitudes ? Bruxelles : De Boeck. [Ouvrage sur la préparation de séquences d'enseignement qui tiennent compte des aspects affectifs et émotionnels]

• Pintrich, P. R. & SCHUNK, D. H. (1996). Motivation in education. Englewood Cliffs : Prentice Hall.

• VIAU, R. (1997). La motivation en contexte scolaire. Bruxelles : De Boeck, 2e éd. [Un des ouvrages en français les plus complets sur le sujet]