Biological Properties of Motivation
Biological Properties of Motivation essay assignment
Biological Properties of Motivation essay assignment
Does the makeup of the human body and mind determine what is motivating? In 1748, the Frenchman La Mettrie published his book Man a Machine, which introduced the idea that the human body is a machine. This machine, however, is different because it has self- awareness/consciousness. Chapter 3 (Evolutionary Antecedents of Motivation) examines how the machine progressed to its current form. The human body evolved because it be- came the best solution for problems of survival. As a result of evolution, humans possess motives and values that are geared toward survival. Motives and values include what we prefer for the beginning and the maintenance of interpersonal relationships, for what we fear, the foods we prefer, even the music we enjoy. These preferences emerge in conscious- ness as likes and dislikes, which motivate behaviors.
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Hedonism motivates beneficial behavior, but can it also explain behavior that is detrimental to a person? Chapter 4 (Addictions and Addictive Behaviors) assumes that pleasure is the reward provided by the natural environment for behaviors that benefit survival. How- ever, we have learned to enhance these pleasures by artificial means with psychoactive drugs like nicotine and alcohol and activities like gambling. Addictive behaviors are examples of natural motivation gone awry. Pleasures designed to reward behaviors necessary for survival are now enjoyed for their own sake to the point of being detrimental to our health.
If the body is a machine, then what motivates a person to keep it in good condition? Chapter 5 (Homeostasis: Temperature, Thirst, Hunger, and Eating) states that sources inside and outside a person provide the motivation for the maintenance of the body. Internally, unpleasant feelings of hot or cold, thirst or hunger motivate behaviors to reduce those feelings. Externally, incentives like food, especially sweets and fats, and clothes for temperature control also prompt motivation. The incentive value of food can be so strong, however, that people eat to obesity while others shun it to the point of emaciation (anorexia).
Is behavior always performed as efficiently as possible? Or does efficiency depend on the level of body arousal? Chapter 6 (Behavior, Arousal, and Affective Valence) exam- ines how the body’s degree of arousal determines the efficiency of behavior. Physiological arousal that is too low or too high is associated with poor performance; intermediate arousal is best. Arousal is also associated with the pleasantness of affect.
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