Two words you rarely see together in social psychology theories of motivation are "intrinsic" and "satiation." Intrinsic-extrinsic motivation researchers often overlook satiation. They often talk about intrinsic goals as if they were infinitely desired. This is a significant mistake.
Some social psychologists have defined "intrinsic motivation" as "pleasure" intrinsic to the performance of an activity. The intrinsic motivation of drawing, they say, is the pleasure people experience when they draw. Harvard social psychologist William McDougall wisely tried to steer social psychology away from pleasure theory, called hedonism, but he wasn't as successful as he should have been.
Pleasure theory has a number of fatal flaws, one of which I will discuss here. It is the fallacy of the infinite. Because the motivational properities of pleasure do not satiate, pleasure is infinitely desired. Like the rat who never stops stimulating the electrode implanted in his brain, a child would never stop drawing if drawing automatically (intrinsically, upon performance) produced pleasure. The social psychological version of hedonism, as expressed in the concept of "intrinsic motivation," implies infinite motivation, which is absurd.
I define "intrinsic motivation" as "universal" motivation. William James and William McDougall correctly appreciated that certain goals motivate everyone. These are goals such as eating food when we are hungry, understanding when we are curious, and fellowship when we are lonely. They are the "intrinsic motives" because they are deeply rooted in human nature. When we experience these goals, we feel pleasure, but it is not the pleasure that motivates us but the goal.
The pleasure we experience with intrinsically valued goals is a function of satiation and is not intrinsic to the experience of goal. Food, for example, is an intrinsic motivator. We seek to eat maybe 2,500 calories a day, give or take. When we eat too little, further eating is pleasurable. When we eat too much, further eating is unpleasant. What was an "intrinsic pleasure" become an "intrinsic displeasure" after satiation occurs.
The motivation for each and every universal goal satiates temporarily. When properly undersood, intrinsic motivation breaks down into what we want, and how much we want. By overlooking "how much," social psychologists have fallen victim to the fallacy of the infinite. In the sceintififc study of universal motivation, "what" we want is about human nature, but "how much" is about individuality. The universal is what; the particular is how much. Social psychologists err in assuming that what we want is pleasure, and they make a second error by overlooking the issue of how much.
"How much" is so important I decided to name it. 16 universal goals give rise to human motivation. Everybody embraces all 16 goals, but individuals prioritze them differently. How a person prioritizes the 16 universdal goals ( how much ) is called a 'Reiss Profile."
I have spent decades constructing the "Reiss Motivation Profile." This standardized questionniares show that 'what" we want are 16 universal goals such as social life, safety, order, understanding, and so on. The results of the assessment show "how much" the individual wants. By learning "how much" you want of each universal goal, you gain insights into why your personality and relationships are what they are. The RMP is a powerful predictor of behavior in natural environments such as business, schools, sports, and health clincis. It is the leading scientifically valid, cross culturally valid tool for assessing what motivates anyone 12 years or older.
As we build a stronger conceptual foundation for motivation science, we advance this field and create rewarding professional careers. You might be surprised to learn how far motivation science has come and what motivation professionals can do for your school or business or athletic team. We are 1,000 strong and practicing on three continents in 15 countries. Part of what we can do will be presented at the next annual meeting of the World Society of Motivation Scientists and Professionals in Washington D. C. For information, visit www.motivationscience.org Join us. Discover. Network. Help your clients. Advance your career. This is the real deal, a moment in your field when old ideas have been discovered invalid, and new ones are being explored.