Approach-avoidance Motivation Research Articles

The Nature and Influencing Factors of Malevolent Creativity

Creativity can be divided into two sides, not only positive but also negative. Malicious creativity will bring great harm to society. This paper introduces the concept and background of malicious creativity, the causes of malicious creativity, and discusses the influence of individual factors (such as negative emotions, empathy and psychological resilience) and environmental factors (such as childhood trauma, parenting, approach-avoidance motivation and social exclusion) on malicious creativity. It reveals the complex mechanism behind the development of malicious creativity. Finally, it discusses how psychological intervention and social support measures can prevent and reduce the occurrence of malicious creativity and promote social harmony and stability. By systematically identifying and understanding the key factors affecting malicious creativity, we can take early preventive measures to reduce its negative social impact. This study provides a foundation for the healthy development of individual psychology and the establishment of a safer, more active and innovative social environment.

Self-regulation and performance among elite youth soccer players: the role of approach-avoidance motivation.

This study aimed to investigate the motivational processes behind self-regulated learning and performance among 192 soccer players (82 girls) for three age groups (14-16 years old) eligible for the Norwegian national football team. A conditional process model was proposed and tested with achievement goals as mediators between achievement motives on the one hand and coach-reported performance and self-regulated learning on the other hand. The probability of success was examined as a potential moderator in the motivational process. As predicted, motives to achieve success directly influenced planning and reflection/evaluation, whereas the influence of the success motive on regulation of effort was explained partly by task- and self-based approach goals. The motive to achieve success was, however, particularly crucial for maintaining these beneficial regulatory processes when the probability of success was found to be from moderate to low. Concerning the avoidance paths, the data supported only some of our original hypotheses. The motive to avoid failure predicted all three types of avoidance-based (task, self, and other) and other-based approach goals but did not contribute to explaining planning, reflection/evaluation, regulation of effort, or performance. There were no significant correlations between motivation variables and coach-reported performance. Moreover, girls were more motivated to avoid failure than boys, while both sexes achieved similar scores for football-specific self-regulated learning, probability of success, achievement goals, and motive to achieve success. The results are discussed considering a hierarchical motivation model.

The (absence of the) presence-absence distinction in motivation science.

A focal stimulus (object, end state, outcome, event, experience, characteristic, possibility, etc.) may represent a presence, an occurrence, or something, or it may represent an absence, a nonoccurrence, or nothing. This presence-absence distinction has received extensive and explicit attention in cognitive psychology (it is the central figure), but it has received minimal and primarily implicit attention in motivation science (it is the ground, not the figure). Herein, we explicitly place the presence-absence distinction in the role of figure in a motivational account of behavior, and we do so in the context of the foundational approach-avoidance motivation distinction. We review pertinent literature in cognitive psychology and motivation science, and we provide a model integrating the approach-avoidance and the presence-absence distinctions, along with numerous examples, illustrations, and observations. We believe that attending to the presence-absence distinction in motivation science holds great promise for theory, research, and application, and we encourage researchers to attend to this distinction moving forward. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

고등학생의 학업정신건강유형에 관한 탐색적 연구

Objectives The present study aimed to explore the profiles of academic-work mental health among Korean high school students, with a focus on academic motivation, which further contribute to providing fundamental evidence to preventive academic-work counseling. Methods The data, self-reported by 391 students in the first and second years from 7 high schools, measured exhaustion, vigor, approach-avoidance motivation, and self-determination motivations were employed for latent profile analysis. Based on this, the profiles of academic-work mental health were investigated, and then multinomial logistic regression analysis was conducted with academic motivation as antecedents. Results Four profiles were observed: the engaged, the burned-out, the studyholic, and the unidentified. Only avoidance motivation significantly distinguished the studyholic from the engaged. Within self-determination motivations, no motivation distinguished it from the engaged and the unidentified except the burned-out. Amotivation and introjected motivation showed the differences between the engaged and the identified/ the burned-out. Conclusions The present findings imply the necessity of early-intervention for the studyholic, featured with the exhausted but engaged. Even with indistinctiveness in appearance between the engaged and the studyholic, screening by avoidance motivation enables their distinction. Further, practical implications lie in the potential possibility for intervention strategy for an adaptive academic-work mental health profile.

Coupling AI with empirical research – A case of 3D printed food technology

3D-printed foods remain narrowly understood by consumers, limiting their ability to make informed choices and potentially obscuring the broader reality of this market. This research aims to investigate the factors influencing consumers’ knowledge, motivation, and intention to consume 3D foods. Leveraging Artificial Intelligence logic, we foreground consumers’ opinions and sentiments about 3D-printed food preferences, drawing on empirical data from two surveys.The findings of sentiment analysis show that the level of knowledge is critical in forming consumer sentiments both, positive and negative. Survey 1 examines the variations in positive affect, negative affect, and behavioral intention toward 3D-printed foods, considering extensive and limited levels of knowledge adequacy. This investigation uses the Knowledge Attitude-Behaviour theoretical model. Survey 2 identifies relationships through Topic recognition and applies the approach-avoidance motivation theory to discern the connection between health choices. Motivation (approach)/(avoidance) for 3D-printed foods both, had a positive and significant effect on healthy food choices. While Motivation (avoidance) had a positive and significant effect on resistance to new foods, Motivation (approach) of 3-D foods was not supported. The findings represented the importance of motivational tendencies, such as approach and avoidance, in shaping decisions related to healthy eating and receptiveness to innovative food concepts.This research presents an opportunity for researchers and practitioners to deepen their understanding of food development and consumer trends in the 3D-printed food market. Relying solely on User-Generated Content for conclusions may be insufficient. Additional research methodologies and data sources are necessary for a comprehensive understanding of behavior and food preferences.

Approaching lifelong learning: An integrated framework for explaining decision-making processes in personal and professional development

Background: Individual differences in commitment to lifelong learning, a process aimed at seizing opportunities for self-development, have not been extensively studied. Objective: Our aim is to provide a comprehensive understanding of the decision-making mechanisms involved in pursuing learning for self-development. Method: We conducted a literature review on the taxing nature of cognitive exertion and its impact on the inclination to engage in cognitively demanding tasks for learning, as well as individual differences in sensitivity to aversive or rewarding outcomes inherent in the learning process. Results: Our findings indicate that the Expected Value of Control (EVC) theory can elucidate the former, while research on approach-avoidance motivation can shed light on the latter. Conclusion: We propose and develop an integrated framework that incorporates both lines of research. This framework holds relevance for neuropsychology, experimental psychology, and education psychology, offering theoretical guidance for tailoring learning experiences to enhance engagement and commitment to self-development.

Hiding in plain sight: The distinct importance of low-arousal positive affect

Most past research on positive affect and emotion has focused exclusively on high-arousal positive affect (HAPA: e.g., excited), however, low-arousal positive affect (LAPA: e.g., calm) increasingly is included in emotion research. As such, there is a need to synthesize knowledge about the similarities and differences between LAPA and HAPA, the operationalization of LAPA and HAPA, and the distinct characteristics and importance of LAPA within emotional life. A systematic search identified 226 research papers comparing LAPA with HAPA from a broad spectrum of research topics; this review provides a narrative summary of their findings. Indications of differences between LAPA and HAPA were found in 89% of comparisons, with LAPA having a consistently distinguishable relationship to variables such as brain activity, cardiovascular health, decision-making, memory, mindfulness, personality, and solitude, among others. Other notable aspects of LAPA were found, including its role in stress, work, positive sociality, and well-being, as well as its importance in older adults and women. An analysis of items used to measure LAPA and HAPA revealed nuanced differences in conceptualizations, as well as emerging consensus around specific item usage. While considering item use in light of approach-avoidance motivation, we identified three possible LAPA subtypes: calm (a steady state of neither approach nor avoidance), satisfaction (having successfully approached), and relief (having successfully avoided). This review clarifies LAPA’s role in affective life, underscoring that LAPA’s differences from HAPA should be considered in research involving positive affect.

РОЛЬ КОГНИТИВНОГО СТИЛЯ В ФОРМИРОВАНИИ ПЕРСОНАЛИЗИРОВАННЫХ ПРОГРАММ ОБУЧЕНИЯ

Cognitive style is one of the most multilevel constructs in psychology, as it combines different approaches to classifying individual characteristics of information processing, decision making and strategies of cognitive activity, including learning efficiency. The expanding possibilities of online learning, not only in the teacher-student format, but also in the brain-computer format, actualize the development of personalized interfaces taking into account the individual cognitive characteristics of users. In this regard, the article presents the results of an analysis of the relationships of cognitive style indicators at the metacognitive level using different approaches to their classification. The study involved 92 students of the Faculty of Humanitarian Education aged 18–23 years. To determine the indicators of extraversion - introversion, sensory – intuition, thinking – feeling and impulsiveness – rationality according to D. Keirsey's method and a profile of thinking styles according to the Harrison-Bramson approach, a computerized program was used with the presentation of the corresponding formulations of situations. Also, the contribution of the approach-avoidance motivation (BIS-BAS system) to the organization of the cognitive style profiles was assessed using the Gray-Wilson questionnaire. It has been shown that analytical and realistic cognitive styles represent the most differentiated ways of organizing style characteristics, and the rational function “thinking” is present in the regression models of these styles, but with a greater effect in the Analyst style. The BIS-BAS systems have been the additional influence on these cognitive styles. Consequently, differences in the information processing by representatives of analytical and realistic styles of thinking together with the motivational component of cognitive activity should be taken into account when developing interface of an educational program with feedback to optimize interaction in the brain-computer system.

Repeated response execution and inhibition alter subjective preferences but do not affect automatic approach and avoidance tendencies toward an object.

Repeated action or inaction toward objects changes preferences for those objects. However, it remains unclear whether such training activates approach-avoidance motivation toward the objects, which leads to actual behavior. We conducted a pre-registered online experiment to examine whether approach and avoidance tendencies were affected by the experience of having executed or withheld a button-press response to a stimulus. Participants (N = 236) performed a Go/NoGo task in which they were asked to repeatedly execute a response to a picture of a mug (i.e., Go-primed stimulus) and suppress a response to another picture of a mug (i.e., NoGo-primed stimulus). They then received one of two manikin tasks, which were implicit association tests designed to assess approach-avoidance tendencies. One manikin task measured the reaction times of moving a manikin toward or away from the Go-primed stimulus and the other picture of a mug (i.e., unprimed stimulus). The other manikin task measured the reaction times of moving a manikin toward or away from the NoGo-primed stimulus and the unprimed stimulus. The participants then rated their preference for the Go-primed, NoGo-primed, and unprimed items. The Go-primed item was evaluated as more highly preferable than the unprimed item in the Go condition, while the NoGo-primed item was evaluated as less preferable than the unprimed item in the NoGo condition. In contrast, the mean approach/avoidance reaction times in the manikin task showed no difference between the Go-primed and unprimed stimuli or between the NoGo-primed and unprimed stimuli. When participants repeatedly responded or inhibited their responses to an object, their explicit preference for the object increased or decreased, respectively. However, the effect did not occur in approach-avoidance behaviors toward the object.

There is a party in my head and no one is invited: Resting-state electrocortical activity and solitude.

What are the motivational underpinnings of solitude? We know from self-report studies that increases in solitude are associated with drops in approach motivation and rises in avoidance motivation, but only when solitude is experienced as non-self-determined (i.e., non-autonomous). However, the extent to which individual differences in solitude relate to neurophysiological markers of approach-avoidance motivation derived from resting-state electroencephalogram (EEG) is unknown. These markers are Frontal Alpha Asymmetry, beta suppression, and midline Posterior versus Frontal EEG Theta Activity. We assessed the relation among individual differences in the reasons for solitude (i.e., preference for solitude, motivation for solitude), approach-avoidance motivation, and resting-state EEG markers of approach-avoidance motivation (N = 115). General preference for solitude was negatively related to approach motivation, observed in both self-reported measures and EEG markers of approach motivation. Self-determined solitude was positively related to both self-reported approach motivation and avoidance motivation in the social domain (i.e., friendship). Non-self-determined solitude was negatively associated with self-reported avoidance motivation. This research was a preliminary attempt to address the neurophysiological underpinnings of solitude in the context of motivation.

How Motivation and Digital Affordances Shape User Behavior in a Virtual World

ABSTRACT Video game players actively interact with the virtual world, altering the content of the environment and their subsequent behaviors in meaningful ways. This study investigates how motivational processes shape user behavior, based on a framework combining approach-avoidance motivation and game affordances. The primary hypotheses predicted that in-game threats and resources shape the initial motivation to explore game affordances at variable patterns. Using a custom-designed game with varying threats and resources, an experiment (N = 125) examined user behavior during various motivationally relevant in-game contexts (e.g., night, day, low-threat, and high-threat). We found that players adaptively employ game affordances to gain benefits and avoid threats, and individual differences in trait-level motivational reactivity moderated these effects, forming distinctive behavioral patterns in creative activities and combat. These findings clarify motivation and affordances as key shapers of user behavior in games and demonstrate that gameplay is made up of discrete, environmentally adaptive behaviors.

Close or distant? The impacts of robot services and spatial distance on service satisfaction

Service robots have become an efficient service option in retail, hospitality, and tourism settings. However, customers tend to be dissatisfied with robot-provided services. This article investigates customers' satisfaction with service robots from the perspective of a neglected factor: spatial distance. COVID-19 prevention policies have brought various challenges to service providers and have highlighted the importance of spatial distance. We propose that adopting service robots during a pandemic could be a win–win strategy for customers and providers. Our three studies included experimental manipulations of service providers and spatial distance. Study 1 examined the correlation between service robots and customers' service satisfaction. Studies 2 and 3 indicated that customers were more satisfied with robot services (vs. human services) in settings featuring close spatial distance, whereas customers preferred human staff (vs. robots) under far spatial distance. We also verified approach–avoidance motivation as the underlying mechanism of the above interaction. These results excluded other factors, such as consumers' tech savviness, perceived expertise, and knowledge level. Findings can help service providers to better understand how spatial distance influences customers’ satisfaction with service robots and devise competitive marketing strategies.

Information confusion as a driver of consumer switching intention on social commerce platforms: a multi-method quantitative approach

PurposeOn the basis of the approach-avoidance motivation theory, this study aims to examine the role of information confusion in influencing consumer switching intention among social commerce platforms, with the mediating effect of emotional exhaustion and the moderating role of social overload.Design/methodology/approachThis study applied a multi-method quantitative approach including a survey and two experiments. Data were obtained from consumers on popular social commerce platforms in China. The survey's sample size was 327 respondents, whereas a total of 1,621 consumers participated in the two experiments.FindingsFindings from the survey reveal that information confusion affects switching intention directly and indirectly via emotional exhaustion. Moreover, social overload moderates the emotional exhaustion–switching intention relationship and the indirect impact of information confusion on switching intention. Results of the two experiments further confirm the relationships found in the survey.Originality/valueThis study develops and validates a mediation and moderation model which expectedly serves as a framework to better explain consumer switching intention on social commerce platforms. The study also offers fresh insights into consumer switching intention in the unique context of social commerce in an emerging market (i.e. China), which has been largely ignored in the prior literature.

The Angiotensin Antagonist Losartan Modulates Social Reward Motivation and Punishment Sensitivity via Modulating Midbrain-Striato-Frontal Circuits.

Social deficits and dysregulations in dopaminergic midbrain-striato-frontal circuits represent transdiagnostic symptoms across psychiatric disorders. Animal models suggest that interactions between the dopamine (DA) and renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may modulate learning and reward-related processes. The present study therefore examined the behavioral and neural effects of the Angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1R) antagonist losartan on social reward and punishment processing in humans. A preregistered randomized double-blind placebo-controlled between-subject pharmacological design was combined with a social incentive delay (SID) functional MRI (fMRI) paradigm during which subjects could avoid social punishment or gain social reward. Healthy volunteers received a single-dose of losartan (50 mg, n = 43, female = 17) or placebo (n = 44, female = 20). We evaluated reaction times (RTs) and emotional ratings as behavioral and activation and functional connectivity as neural outcomes. Relative to placebo, losartan modulated the reaction time and arousal differences between social punishment and social reward. On the neural level the losartan-enhanced motivational salience of social rewards was accompanied by stronger ventral striatum-prefrontal connectivity during reward anticipation. Losartan increased the reward-neutral difference in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and attenuated VTA associated connectivity with the bilateral insula in response to punishment during the outcome phase. Thus, losartan modulated approach-avoidance motivation and emotional salience during social punishment versus social reward via modulating distinct core nodes of the midbrain-striato-frontal circuits. The findings document a modulatory role of the renin-angiotensin system in these circuits and associated social processes, suggesting a promising treatment target to alleviate social dysregulations.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Social deficits and anhedonia characterize several mental disorders and have been linked to the midbrain-striato-frontal circuits of the brain. Based on initial findings from animal models we here combine the pharmacological blockade of the Angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1R) via losartan with functional MRI (fMRI) to demonstrate that AT1R blockade enhances the motivational salience of social rewards and attenuates the negative impact of social punishment via modulating the communication in the midbrain-striato-frontal circuits in humans. The findings demonstrate for the first time an important role of the AT1R in social reward processing in humans and render the AT1R as promising novel treatment target for social and motivational deficits in mental disorders.

Examining the Treatment Relevance of the Approach-Avoidance Motivation Model for Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder in Women and Non-Binary Individuals

ABSTRACT Up to 8% of cisgender women meet diagnostic criteria for Female Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder (SIAD), a diagnosis in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, yet treatment research for SIAD remains scarce, particularly for transgender women and non-binary individuals. The treatment relevance of the Approach-Avoidance Motivation Model for SIAD was tested in a sample of cis- and transgender women, and non-binary individuals, who either met criteria for SIAD (n = 45) or reported no sexual concerns (n = 76). Participants completed an online writing exercise previously found to increase the salience of approach or avoidance sexual motivation, or a control writing task. At baseline, and 72 hours following the writing task, they completed measures of sexual motivation, sexual desire, and partnered sexual behaviors. Participants with SIAD in the approach condition significantly increased in approach sexual motivation immediately following the manipulation but these improvements were not maintained 72 hours later. Compared to baseline, participants who wrote about an approach-motivated sexual encounter experienced a decrease in sexual desire and partnered sexual behaviors, while participants who wrote about an avoidance-motivated sexual encounter had decreased motivation but increased partnered sexual behaviors 72 hours following the manipulation. Overall, findings did not show support for the relevance of the approach-avoidance motivation manipulation for SIAD. Future studies might explore novel ways of targeting sexual motivation to address sexual difficulties.

Tell me why or tell me to whom: Framing charitable solicitations based on political orientation

Soliciting charitable giving is a day-to-day challenge for nonprofit organizations (NPOs); thus, scholars and practitioners are increasingly looking for reliable and practical segmentation variables that NPOs can use to optimize their communication to potential donors. The present research examines how the sociocultural dimension of a political orientation may affect their donations according to the communication framing used by an NPO. Combining secondary field data and experiments, we highlight approach–avoidance motivations as a relevant framework for NPOs in adapting their communication to the political orientation of their audience. This research contributes to the existing literature by highlighting the conditions under which liberals and conservatives may donate more. We show the efficacy of approach-based framing for liberals and avoidance-based framing for conservatives. We also point out the influence of the perceived proximity of the beneficiaries and the degree of social justice associated with the cause according to the political orientation of donors. This article provides strong insight for NPOs to segment, adapt, and improve their communication with their audience.

An analysis of awe evoked by COVID-19 on green purchasing behavior: A dual-path effect of approach-avoidance motivation.

The spread of the COVID-19 virus shows that it is time to re-emphasize the ethical attitude of “awe of others, awe of nature, and awe of life.” It once again reveals the importance of green development. In this study, we introduce awe into the context of COVID-19 and construct an “emotion-motivation-behavior” framework, aiming to explore the relationship between the epidemic and green purchasing behavior from a psychological perspective. Study 1 demonstrates the effect of awe on green purchasing and examines the mediating role of the motivation perspective, to reveal the potential different path. Specifically, prosocial motivation mediates the effect of positive awe evoked by COVID-19 on green purchasing; risk avoidance motivation mediates the effect of negative awe evoked by COVID-19 on green purchasing. Study 2 examined the moderating effect of self-construal. These findings have important management implications for enterprises to correctly use emotional guidance strategies and promote green marketing practices during the COVID-19.

How Do Entrepreneurs Respond to a Crisis? Approach-Avoidance and Broaden-and-Build Perspective

In the face of a crisis, some entrepreneurs seek opportunities to thrive, whereas others strive to protect themselves from threats to survival. Curiously, there has been little examination of when and how entrepreneurs respond differently to an entrepreneurial crisis, defined as an unanticipated, impactful, and urgent event in an entrepreneur’s business operations. We posit that entrepreneurs respond in either a positive manner through creatively combining resources at hand (i.e., bricolage) or a negative manner through violating ethical values to protect the venture’s short-term interest (i.e., unethical pro-organizational behavior or UPB). Drawing upon approach-avoidance motivation and broaden-and-build theory, we examine when and how an entrepreneurial crisis leads to these different responses. We conducted a five-month longitudinal study of 100 entrepreneurs (482 observations). We found that when entrepreneur’s approach motivation was high rather than low, entrepreneurial crisis was related to an increase in bricolage and a decrease in intention to quit via increased interest. On the other hand, when entrepreneur’s avoidance motivation was high rather than low, entrepreneurial crisis was related to an increase in UPB and intention to quit via increased anger. Our study advances research on entrepreneurial responses to crisis by showing when entrepreneurs respond creatively or unethically and the associated mechanisms of these responses.

Conflicted about online learning?: Using sentiment analysis to explore learner approach-avoidance motivation

PurposeStudent motivation underpins the challenge of learning, made more complex by the move to online education. While emotions are integral to students' motivation, research has, to date, overlooked the dualistic nature of emotions that can cause stress. Using approach-avoidance conflict theory, the authors explore this issue in the context of novel online students' responses to a fully online class.Design/methodology/approachUsing a combination of critical incident technique and laddering, the authors implemented the big data method of sentiment analysis (SA) which results in approach tables with 1,318 tokens and avoid tables with 1,090 tokens. Using lexicon-based SA, the authors identify tokens relating to approach, avoid and mixed emotions.FindingsThe authors implemented the big data method of SA which results in approach tables with 1,318 tokens and avoid tables with 1,090 tokens. Using lexicon-based SA, the authors identify tokens relating to approach, avoid and mixed emotions. These ambivalent emotions provide an opportunity for teachers to rapidly diagnose and address issues of student engagement in an online learning class.Originality/valueResults demonstrate the practical application of SA to unpack the role of emotions in online learner motivation.

Embodiment of concealable stigma disclosure through dynamics of movement and language

A concealable stigmatised identity (CSI) is any identity that can be hidden but, if revealed, can be potentially socially devaluing (e.g., sexual minority). Those living with a CSI have opportunities to disclose their identities to friends and family members or within professional contexts. According to the disclosure processes model, people adopt either approach-oriented or avoidance-oriented goals when self disclosing. The current study sought to identify how antecedent goals and relationship context are embodied in the dynamics of unintentional behaviours during disclosure. Participants simulated a disclosure event to both close other and professional other targets and were primed with either approach or avoidance-motivations. Postural activity and language were analysed using detrended fluctuation analysis and recurrence quantification analysis. Results revealed that the movement dynamics of participants who were motivated by approach goals exhibited more complex and flexible behaviour compared to those who were motivated by avoidance goals. In addition, there was more recurrent word use towards close others compared to professional others. These results support the supposition of the disclosure processes model that approach-avoidance motivation impacts behaviour and sheds light on the functional differences between relationship contexts on a CSI disclosure experience.