Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Essay

A motive is a specific need or drive that arouses you and directs your behavior toward a certain goal. Emotion refers to the experience of feelings, (such as fear, sadness, happiness, etc) which also affects behavior. They push us to take some kind of action whether we are aware of it or not. Psychologists have put these behaviors into 3 categories: Arousal Theory, Drive-Reduction Theory, and Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation (Morris, 2012). Intrinsic & Extrinsic Motivation Shannon comes to work every day on time. She does her job as assigned, works hard, takes on challenging tasks to improve performance, and ensures that this is noticed by others. She is very clear about the expectations for her position as well as the criteria for evaluation. During annual evaluations, she hopes her evaluation scores are high enough for her to be eligible for a merit raise. One of her primary goals for this year is to be nominated for the employee of the year at the company’s annual dinner, which comes with both a preferred parking and a cash bonus. Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation may increase Shannon’s motivation because it motivates her to see others see her doing a good job and this behavior can be defined as intrinsic motivation because of the praise she gets from others. Her behavior is also motivated by the goal of being employee of the year, which comes with rewards and this can be defined as extrinsic motivation. Although Shannon enjoys her job the motivation of an award is what motivates her the most. She is motivated extrinsically by the rewards she may receive for her behavior at work, therefore her intrinsic motivation and sense of responsibility for her behavior are likely to increase. The Arousal theory may decrease Shannon’s motivation because she doesn’t need to be stimulated to do her job, and there are no incentives in the end to reward her for a job well done. She is not seeking a thrill for her behavior; she will perform better with praise and rewards (Morris, 2012). Arousal Theory Joe enjoys coming to work each day. He finds pleasure in the outcome of his work. He believes his work helps others. He seeks out new ways to make his work more effective, and often initiates new work projects. He likes to stay busy throughout the day. He sometimes has a hard time if there is not enough work to do. He has no desire to leave the organization and would like to continue to be promoted within the company as he gains experience. The Arousal Theory can best motivate Joe because he is a thrill seeker and is motivated by the challenge of seeking new ways to make his work more effective. Joe is a sensation seeker and without it he will become bored with his work. He needs to keep his arousal at an optimum level in order to be productive. The Drive- Reduction theory may decrease Joe’s motivation because it’s the drive that keeps him going. Homeostasis or balance may not be enough excitement for him, and will lower his motivation and ambition at work. His primary and secondary drives are already established by his work performance, and his reward is the knowledge he has gained (Morris, 2012). These achievement-oriented behaviors can be very useful in the work place because everyone need a motive to do a good job. An employee can motivate by giving new challenges to a bored employee whose job has become routine and boring like in the Arousal Theory, or by giving incentives such as praise and bonuses as mentioned in the Intrinsic and Extrinsic Theory. Once an employer observe an individual’s behavior and work ethics they can decide which method will best motivate their employee to do a good job and enjoy it as well (Morris, 2012). References Morris,C. (2012). Understanding Psychology( 10th ed.).