Motivation

Motivation could be described as the impetus or driving force that compels an individual or a body to performing an action with respect to achieving a goal which in itself may be tangible like money or intangible like for instance an attribute. Motivation is considered to be a highly relative concept as for example though two or more individuals may be performing the same action which may even have the same end result but the motivation that led to the efforts may have been different as also the way the end result is interpreted. Motivation is dependent to a certain degree on the society and culture or in short the environment in which the individual exists that defines the overall route that is to be followed regarding the various stages in life.

The celebrated psychologist Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) in his work A Theory of Human Motivation described the concept on the basis of a hierarchical classification of human needs which are created as well as satisfied due to factors that are both extrinsic as well as intrinsic. He stated that man is motivated first by the basic bodily needs like satisfying hunger as well as ensuring one's safety followed by social needs which may be esteem based arising from achievements and the more subtle ones related to the emotions, the entire process culminating in self actualization a stage in which man is in harmony with himself better equipped to exist. In case one's basic needs are not fulfilled generally the motivation level cannot be transferred to the other hierarchical needs while the satisfaction of a basic need leads to motivation to satisfy other more subtle ones.

Maslow's theory has an intuitive appeal to it, but there is little empirical support that this philosophy can be translated successfully into real-life settings such as schools and businesses. Until there is a data base that demonstrates the utility of the perspective, it can only play a minimum role in a science whose primary goal is data-based...