Human evolution and the role of motivation
People are living the only way of living there is: a motivated life. Everyone of us would not be able to live without some sort of motivation and drive. And it has been this way since some of our ancestors developed to what we know as human beings.
Sounds too easy? Yes, it is a very short summary of what makes people do what they do. But, if you strip everything off the body, all that’s left is an animal with a strong will to survive and curiosity built into its nature. And to satisfy this curious animal, we have two tools one could say. Motivation and drive.
What is drive?
A drive is based on an instinctual need we must satisfy. Classical examples include the drive to survive or to reproduce. Not satisfying these needs has negative consequences that occur in various forms – including the ultimate negative outcome of dying. Britannica.com defines it as “an urgent basic need pressing for satisfaction, usually rooted in some physiological tension, deficiency, or imbalance (e.g., hunger and thirst) and impelling the organism to action.” (Source) So these actions are something one could find in the base of Maslow’s pyramid of needs (INSERT LINK TO chapter on Maslow). We will get to what this pyramid is.
What is motivation?
Motivation on the other hand is based on our need to achieve some sort of greater self. Looking at Maslow’s theory, the ultimate state is continuous self-actualisation. And there is the keyword: continuous. Motivation is never ending, because there is always something new to explore, learn, understand or achieve. Motivation is also often referred to as the psychological process behind one’s behaviour.
Difference between motivation and motive
And while we are at it, let us make one more distinction. While motivation and motive sound very similar to each other and they also have a lot to do with each other, we should at least be able to differentiate both. A motive is the cause of a certain behaviour while motivation is the psychological process underlying the behaviour.
And if we want to go into a bit more details, there are primary and secondary motives (source). Primary are the ones connected to the drives normally found in the base layer of Maslow’s pyramid of needs. Examples include hunger, thirst, sleep and sex. Secondary motives are those found in the upper layers of the pyramid. They are connected to aspiration and the strive to develop oneself.
What is behaviour?
The last definition I want you to get in touch with is what behaviour actually is. It is the meaning behind behaviour. It is the way someone behaves or acts. One could also say it is the visible part of the motive-motivation/drive-behaviour chain. Behaviour is measurable and traceable. And it is how we interact with our surroundings.