Motivational Assumptions Research Articles

Self-organization in psychotherapy: testing the synergetic model of change processes.

In recent years, models have been developed that conceive psychotherapy as a self-organizing process of bio-psycho-social systems. These models originate from the theory of self-organization (Synergetics), from the theory of deterministic chaos, or from the approach of self-organized criticality. This process-outcome study examines several hypotheses mainly derived from Synergetics, including the assumption of discontinuous changes in psychotherapy (instead of linear incremental gains), the occurrence of critical instabilities in temporal proximity of pattern transitions, the hypothesis of necessary stable boundary conditions during destabilization processes, and of motivation to change playing the role of a control parameter for psychotherapeutic self-organization. Our study was realized at a day treatment center; 23 patients with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) were included. Client self-assessment was performed by an Internet-based process monitoring (referred to as the Synergetic Navigation System), whereby daily ratings were recorded through administering the Therapy Process Questionnaire (TPQ). The process measures of the study were extracted from the subscale dynamics (including the dynamic complexity of their time series) of the TPQ. The outcome criterion was measured by the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) which was completed pre-post and on a bi-weekly schedule by all patients. A second outcome criterion was based on the symptom severity subscale of the TPQ. Results supported the hypothesis of discontinuous changes (pattern transitions), the occurrence of critical instabilities preparing pattern transitions, and of stable boundary conditions as prerequisites for such transitions, but not the assumption of motivation to change as a control parameter.

How to Do Things with Fictions

The article reconstructs three key concepts of Hans Vaihinger: the idea of mental fictions as self-contradictory, provisory, conscious, and purposeful; the law of the devolution of ideas stating that an idea oscillates between dogma, hypothesis, or fiction; and the underlying assumption about human consciousness that the psyche constructs thoughts around perceptions like an oyster produces a pearl. In a second, constructive part, these concepts are applied in a discussion of John Searle’s social ontologically extended theory of speech acts. The article introduces the Vaihingerian as-if to Searle’s account of declarations. The explanatory work in a model of social reality as Searle has proposed it rests on the ability to show a necessary connection between collective and individual intentionality facilitated through linguistic structure. The methodological individualism of the model requires that motivational assumptions about collective structures be realized in individual brains. The as-if stance of the declarer provides just this connection.

Behavioral Political Economy: A Survey

Explaining individual behavior in politics should rely on the same motivational assumptions as explaining behavior in the market: That’s what Political Economy, understood as the application of economics to the study of political processes, is all about. In its standard variant, those who played the game of politics should also be considered rational and self-interested, unlike the benevolent despot of earlier models. History repeats itself with the rise of behavioral economics: Assuming cognitive biases to be present in the market, but not in politics, behavioral economists often call for government to intervene in a “benevolent” way. Recently, however, political economists have started to apply behavioral economics insights to the study of political processes, thereby re-establishing a unified methodology. This paper surveys the current state of the emerging field of “Behavioral Political Economy” and considers the scope for further research.

Objectivity of Learning Performance Evaluation Evaluated by School Age Pupils as an Assumption of Achievement Motivation and School Success

In the submission are presented research findings of relationship between perceived adequacy of school age pupil's evaluation to their learning motivation and school success. The research was conducted on 140 pupils of 5th – 9th grade of primary school through success in Mathematics, items from Kozéki's questionnaire (1980) and propositions of Q-sorting (Stephenson, 1935) of perceived evaluation objectivity. It is possible to state that school success is the assumption of achievement motivation; however the learning performance is not related to perceiving evaluation objectivity presented by school success.

Strategic Trade Policy on Oligopolistic Markets

Trade policy has been a popular field of economists’ interests since Brander and Spencer works were published in 1985. In the presence of strengthening competition on international markets, many governments are interested in supporting their chosen industries. The most profitable support is connected with oligopolistic markets. If a domestic firm is a part of an international oligopoly and receives any kind of support from its own government, it competes successfully on the market. Due to the public financing (or any other external funding), the firm may reduce its costs or any other expenditures and increase profits. Pivotal issue to emphasize is that concurrently with the improvement of the situation of a particular firm, there is no significant increase of the price of product, but there is a substantial improvement in terms of the national welfare. Many economists pointed out the role of government’s subsidies regarding the strategic trade policy in case of the international oligopolies. This paper presents some theoretical background for consideration of profitability of subsidies and their justification on the oligopolistic market. It concerns two models: Branders (1995) – third market model with export production subsidies and Bagwell and Staiger (1994), who refer to the R&D subsidies. Because of WTO restrictions concerning direct export subsidies, many of the theoretical models refer to the R&D subsidies, which are not banned. The main purpose of this paper is to show theoretical assumptions of a motivation for implementing subsidies for domestic firm being a part of an international oligopoly. I will present figures showing the level of the R&D subsidisation in the EU-countries as well as in the countries joining the European Union in the next future. On the basis of some empirical data I will prove the thesis that government activity in the field of export support would help in achieving a dominant position on the international oligopoly and ameliorate the economic situation of the country because of the export trigger and national welfare improvement.

Self-Control, Thrill Seeking, and Crime

Self-control theory (SCT), as a control theory, assumes that the pleasures gained from crime are equally obvious and attractive to all. This study brings a consideration of crime as a process into SCT, recognizing that the sensations inherent in offending may not be equally attractive to everyone. In doing so, we test the theory’s equal motivation assumption, bringing a consideration of individual differences in thrill seeking to the fore. Drawing on theory and research on the personality characteristic thrill seeking, we hypothesize that thrill seeking and self-control have independent influences on offending: that motivation to the process of crime matters. In addition, we investigate whether the effects of self-control are contingent on levels of thrill seeking, in part because high thrill seekers are less averse to the process of risk. These hypotheses are tested using data from the Family and Community Health Study, a sample of roughly 700 African American youth and their families. A new measure of self-control is employed in tandem with an existing attitudinal measure of self-control and thrill seeking. Consistent with hypotheses, the results suggest that self-control and thrill seeking have largely independent influences on offending and that the effects of self-control are contingent on levels of thrill seeking. These results provide further evidence that SCT’s assumption of equal motivation to crime is untenable, as individual differences in the personality characteristic thrill seeking influence the likelihood of offending.

A convention or (tacit) agreement betwixt us: on reliance and its normative consequences

The aim of this paper is to clarify what kind of normativity characterizes a convention. First, we argue that conventions have normative consequences because they always involve a form of trust and reliance. We contend that it is by reference to a moral principle impinging on these aspects (i.e. the principle of Reliability) that interpersonal obligations and rights originate from conventional regularities. Second, we argue that the system of mutual expectations presupposed by conventions is a source of agreements. Agreements stemming from conventions are “tacit” in the sense that they are implicated by what agents do (or forbear from doing) and without that any communication between them is necessary. To justify this conclusion, we assume that: (1) there is a salient interpretation, in some contexts, of everyone’s silence as confirmatory of the others’ expectations (an epistemic assumption), and (2) the participating agents share a value of not being motivated by hostile attitudes (a motivational assumption). By clarifying the relation between conventions and agreements, the peculiar normativity of conventions is analyzed.

Why Need is “A Word We Cannot Do Without” in Economics

Economists in the neoclassical tradition do their best to avoid using the word “need.” Social economists have traditionally been more open to discussions of need. Philosophic discussions of need are also scarce but nevertheless helpful. This essay will argue that need is “a word we cannot do without” in economics, and not only in social economics. Need is objective, satiable, and absolute, by contrast with want or preference as it is defined in neoclassical economics. With this clarification, 1) it is reasonable that public policy should consider need as well as want and aim to satisfy some needs, and 2) for some purposes, such as the economics of health care, conventional demand cannot be understood without the concept of need. Thus, even the narrower purposes of neoclassical economics cannot be achieved without clarifying and using the concept of need, in addition to the more usual motivational assumptions of neoclassical economics.

Economic Analysis of Contract Law from the Internal Point of View

Economic analysis of law has traditionally assumed that legal rules are or ought to be designed to maximize social welfare taking as given that legal subjects are like Holmes’ “bad man” — rational, self-interested agents who care about complying with the law only insofar as non-compliance exposes them to the risk of sanctions. This Article challenges this motivational assumption while keeping the standard economic framework otherwise intact on the grounds that while some legal subjects are, like Holmes’ bad man, “externalizers” of legal rules, others regard the law from the “internal point of view,” that is, they are “internalizers” of legal rules who are motivated to conform to legal rules apart from the consequences of defiance on a particular occasion. The Article derives specific doctrinal implications for contract law assuming that there are internalizers as well as externalizers in the subject population. It analyzes several contract law phenomena: the expectation principle, according to which a victim of a breach of contract is entitled to his expectation, and no more than his expectation; the penalty doctrine and stipulated damages clauses; the doctrine of willful breach; and the doctrine of contract modification. The resulting analysis shows that internalizers respond to these doctrines differently from externalizers and evaluates how the prescriptive implications of economic analysis for the design of contract law doctrines changes once we recognize that there are both internalizers and externalizers in the population. For example, the presence of internalizers in the subject population provides a justification for punishing some “willful breaches” more harshly than ordinary breaches. It also helps to justify the modern doctrine of contract modification.

Enabling a motivated workforce: exploring the sources of motivation

PurposeThis paper recognizes self determination theory (SDT) as a model to successfully motivate an organization's workforce and recommends SDT as a more encompassing theory of motivation. Consequently, motivation assumes a different dimension and it therefore becomes necessary to consider issues associated with autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and motivation as a predictor of performance. This paper aims to address this issue.Design/methodology/approachThe paper initially identifies the underlying assumptions of motivation that include: people having the capacity for responsible actions, a natural aspiration to learning and understanding things, and the desire to do good at work and play. The paper then proceeds to addresses several basic issues associated with SDT, namely, cognitive, affective and psycho‐motor development. Finally, it considers perception of the self, one's psychological and emotional needs, life goals and aspirations, individual dynamism, culture and the impact of social environments as key issues that determine one's ability to self‐actualize.FindingsThe study shows SDT's relevance to discussions in organizational behavior. The findings suggest that extrinsic motivation can be deleterious to intrinsic motivation. Work‐related happiness is acquired when individuals use their personality as a motivation determinant to fulfill a mission that is meaningful to themselves too. Individuals are most resourceful and innovative when they feel motivated largely as a result of their interest, their inner satisfaction, and challenges of the work itself and not by external pressures or incentives.Practical implicationsIn this regard it is recommended that human resources professionals and/or managers need to consider issues associated with autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and motivation as a predictor of performance. Different attitudinal relationships towards work‐play necessitate distinct types of motivation. Should work and play become homogeneous, the defining role of human resources management in relation to motivation needs revisiting in particular SDTOriginality/valueThis paper adds to the academic literature on motivation in a somewhat different vein by presenting autonomy, competence, and relatedness in SDT as vitally essential for psychological growth, optimal functioning, and well‐being in any fields of endeavor. The study identifies extrinsic rewards as undermining intrinsic motivation in most circumstances.

Optimizing the Design and Deployment of Stationary Combined Heat and Power Fuel Cell Systems for Minimum Costs and Emissions—Part II: Model Results

The maximizing emission reductions and economic savings simulator (MERESS) is an optimization tool that evaluates novel strategies for installing and operating combined heat and power (CHP) fuel cell systems (FCSs) in buildings. This article discusses the deployment of MERESS to show illustrative results for a California campus town and, based on these results, makes recommendations for further installations of FCSs to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. MERESS is used to evaluate one of the most challenging FCS types to use for GHG reductions, the phosphoric acid fuel cell (PAFC) system. These PAFC systems are tested against a base case of a CHP combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT). Model results show that three competing goals (GHG emission reductions, cost savings to building owners, and FCS manufacturer sales revenue) are best achieved with different strategies but that all three goals can be met reasonably with a single approach. According to MERESS, relative to a base case of only a CHP CCGT providing heat and electricity with no FCSs, the town achieves the highest (1) GHG emission reductions, (2) cost savings to building owners, and (3) FCS manufacturer sales revenue each with three different operating strategies, under a scenario of full incentives and a $100/tonne carbon dioxide (CO2) tax (scenario D). The town achieves its maximum CO2 emission reduction, 37% relative to the base case with operating strategy V: stand-alone (SA) operation, no load following (NLF), and a fixed heat-to-power ratio (FHP) (SA, NLF, and FHP; scenario E). The town’s building owners gain the highest cost savings, 25% with strategy I: electrically and thermally networked (NW), electricity power load following (ELF), and a variable heat-to-power ratio (VHP) (NW, ELF, and VHP; scenario D). FCS manufacturers generally have the highest sales revenue with strategy III: NW, NLF with a FHP (NW, NLF, and FHP; scenarios B, C, and D). Strategies III and V are partly consistent with the way that FCS manufacturers design their systems today, primarily as NLF with a FHP. By contrast, strategy I is novel for the fuel cell industry, in particular, in its use of a VHP and thermal networking. Model results further demonstrate that FCS installations can be economical for building owners without any carbon tax or government incentives. Without any carbon tax or state and federal incentives (scenario A), strategy I is marginally economical with 3% energy cost savings but with a 29% reduction in CO2 emissions. Strategy I is the most economical strategy for building owners in all scenarios (scenarios A–D) and, at the same time, reasonably achieves other goals of large GHG emission reductions and high FCS manufacturer sales revenue. Although no particular building type stands out as consistently achieving the highest emission reductions and cost savings (scenarios B-2 and E-2), certain building load curves are clear winners. For example, buildings with load curves similar to Stanford’s Mudd chemistry building (a wet laboratory) achieve maximal cost savings (1.5% with full federal and state incentives but no carbon tax) and maximal CO2 emission reductions (32%) (scenarios B-2 and E-2). Finally, based on these results, this work makes recommendations for reducing GHG further through FCS deployment. (Part I of II articles discusses the motivation and key assumptions behind the MERESS model development.)

Optimizing the Design and Deployment of Stationary Combined Heat and Power Fuel Cell Systems for Minimum Costs and Emissions—Part I: Model Design

Stationary combined heat and power (CHP) fuel cell systems (FCSs) can provide electricity and heat for buildings and can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions significantly if they are configured with an appropriate installation and operating strategy. The maximizing emission reduction and economic saving simulator (MERESS) is an optimization tool that was developed to evaluate novel strategies for installing and operating CHP FCSs in buildings. These novel strategies include networking, load following, and the use of variable heat-to-power ratios, all of which industry typically has not implemented. A primary goal of models like MERESS is to use relatively inexpensive simulation studies to identify more financially and environmentally effective ways to design and install FCSs. Models like MERESS can incorporate the pivotal choices that FCS manufacturers, building owners, emission regulators, competing generators, and policy makers make, and empower them to evaluate the effect of their choices directly. MERESS directly evaluates trade-offs among three key goals: GHG reductions, energy cost savings for building owners, and high sales revenue for FCS manufacturers. MERESS allows one to evaluate these design trade-offs and to identify the optimal control strategies and building load curves for installation based on either (1) maximum GHG emission reductions or (2) maximum cost savings to building owners. Part I discusses the motivation and key assumptions behind MERESS model development. Part II discusses run results from MERESS for a California town and makes recommendations for further FCS installments (Colella , 2011, “Optimizing the Design and Deployment of Stationary Combined Heat and Power Fuel Cell Systems for Minimum Costs and Emissions—Part II: Model Results,” ASME J. Fuel Cell Sci. Technol., 8(2), p. 021002).

Unanswered Questions about Public Service Motivation: Designing Research to Address Key Issues of Emergence and Effects

As public service motivation research gains momentum, important questions emerge regarding its origins and consequences that are not addressed by existing research. The authors identify some fundamental public service motivation assumptions, including critical gaps in our current understanding of its basic tenets. The authors then discuss specific research studies that, by virtue of their findings and designs, may fill in and inform such apparent gaps. Their aim is to chart new concrete directions for scholarship that complements and advances existing public service motivation research.

Five Models of Regulatory Compliance Motivation: Empirical Findings and Normative Implications

This chapter suggests that five distinctive assumptions of human motivation can be identified among the existing regulatory models. The first regulatory approach targets the incentive-driven individual. According to this model, the dominant motivation of the individual is based on a cost-benefit calculation and thus the approach of the regulator should focus on deterring the bad apples and providing incentives to the good apples. The second regulatory approach targets the reason-driven individual where the main assumption about human motivation is of an individual who looks to regulators to be convinced about the wisdom of engaging in a certain behavior. The third regulatory approach assumes that the dominant compliance motivation is related to social identity. Therefore, most of the attention is focused on demonstrating to the individual that the prevailing norm, either quantitatively or qualitatively, is to obey the law. The fourth regulatory approach, assumes that an individual is mainly motivated by fairness and morality. Finally, the fifth model, focuses on the citizenship-oriented individual, whose main motivation is compliance simply because it is the law, regardless of its content. The main theoretical body for this model is related to certain aspects of institutional legitimacy. Following a discussion of the differences and similarities among the different models, the main normative argument which is developed is related to the ability of the policy maker to take advantage of this knowledge to design a behaviorally-responsive regulation.

Quantitative Analysis of the Russian Universal Research Libraries Research Activity

Unequal opportunities of regional universal libraries are discussed based on the results of quantitative analysis of 66 regional universal scientific libraries work (more than 75% of all network), as well as the assumption of various motivation of their administrations to research activity. It demands unequal, but fair terms of financing. The results can be used in the planning process of library network research activity.

Agency vs. Stewardship in Public Family Firms: A Social Embeddedness Reconciliation

Family businesses (FBs) play a key role in the world's economies. Unfortunately, the current literature surfaces disparate understandings and conclusions concerning their conduct and performance. Much of that literature falls under two insightful perspectives, agency theory and stewardship theory, that conflict quite directly. The agency view, based in economics, maintains that families will pursue utility for themselves to the detriment of their public shareholders. By contrast, stewardship proponents, arguing from a psychological perspective, suggest that family owners will invest deeply in their enterprise, to the benefit of all. This study synthesizes the literature on each of these perspectives to derive core motivational assumptions and expected organizational outcomes. Then, by employing a third sociological perspective, it proposes to reconcile these opposing views by considering the social embeddedness of firms and their key actors within the institution of the family for different types of public family enterprises. It will argue that there is a need for such integration in order to better understand and permit accurate, context–based predictions across various kinds of family businesses and family business situations.

Beyond Self‐Interest Revisited*

abstract We revisit the self‐interest view on human behaviour and its critique, and propose a framework, called self‐love view, that integrates self‐interest and unselfishness and provides different explanations of the relationship between preferences, behaviour, and outcomes. Proponents of self‐interest as the only valid behavioural assumption argue for simplified assumptions and clear models in order to propose precise prescriptions, while critics to this self‐interest view argue for realistic assumptions and rich descriptions in order to reach better explanations. This debate inhibits theoretical development because it faces the problem of incommensurability of standards for choosing among paradigms. We propose the concept of self‐love, or the inclination of human beings to strive for their own good and perfection, to remove the assumption self‐interest vs. unselfishness. Self‐love distinguishes between the object and the subject of motivation and therefore creates a bi‐dimensional motivational space. This framework replaces the unidimensional continuum self‐interest–unselfishness, specifies eight interrelated motives, and provides different expected relationships between preferences, behaviour, and outcomes. We show that a better understanding of motivational assumptions, their embodiment in theories, and their influence on the very behaviours these theories assume provides managers and policymakers more alternatives for the designing of motivational contexts than in the case of assuming either self‐interest or a permanent conflict between self‐interest and unselfishness.

Robust political economy

This paper introduces the idea of “robust political economy.” In the context of political economic systems, “robustness” refers to a political economic arrangement's ability to produce social welfare-enhancing outcomes in the face of deviations from ideal assumptions about individuals' motivations and information. Since standard assumptions about complete and perfect information, instantaneous market adjustment, perfect agent rationality, political actor benevolence, etc., rarely, if ever actually hold, a realistic picture and accurate assessment of the desirability of alternative political economic systems requires an analysis of alternative systems' robustness. The Mises-Hayek critique of socialism forms the foundation for investigations of robustness that relax ideal informational assumptions. The Buchanan-Tullock public choice approach complements this foundation in forming the basis for investigations of robustness that relax ideal motivational assumptions.

Serial entrepreneurs and focused human intentionality in the development of the Cambridge technopole

It has been argued by some researchers that intention is a defining trait in the character of serial entrepreneurs. Recently, Zohar and Marshall (2004) have highlighted the contrast between business practice based on a narrow linear assumption of human nature and motivation for short-term gain, and 'a culture driven by fundamental values and a deep sense of purpose' focused on wealth creation and the common good. This is referred to as spiritual capital. This paper evaluates the relationships between intuition, focused human intentionality, and spiritual intelligence of 12 hi-tech serial entrepreneurs, the performance of the Cambridge technopole, and experimental measures of non-local intention. Such understanding of the intellectual, emotional and spiritual intelligence components of decision making and the reality of intention to serial entrepreneurs will improve entrepreneurship teaching pedagogy and development of serial entrepreneurs.

Are Two Knaves Better Than One? Hume, Buchanan, and Musgrave on Economics and Government

It is commonplace to view market agents as self-interested knaves, while government agents are either as knaves or public-spirited angels. What are the consequences of these different motivational assumptions in modeling governmental and market behavior? We compare David Hume, James M. Buchanan, and Richard Musgrave. We claim that Hume, the only one thinking consistently in terms of the worst-case, offers a second best solution for both the government and the economy, which may turn out to be the best possible solution given human nature. Because of the reciprocal check, two knaves are better than one. More is preferred to less even with vices…