2. 1 COGNITIVE-MOTIVATIONAL THEORIES DEFINITIONAL ISSUES Cognitive-motivational units and self-regulation COGNITIVE-MOTIVATIONAL THEORIES ABOUT THE SELF Higgins: real/ideal/ought selves Dweck: incremental vs. entity self-theories MIDDLE-LEVEL UNITS Types Personal strivings and mental and physical well- being

3. 2 CHARACTERISTICS OF MOTIVATED BEHAVIOR: raises and fades over time coherent (organized) persistent and efficient associated to a network of cognitions (images, beliefs, plans) has emotional correlates and consequences (e.g., frustration) Do you remember this from intro lecture on motives?

4. 3 Integrating motives and cognitions …. COGNITIVE-MOTIVATIONAL THEORIES: Modern social-personality theories that emphasize the link between cognitions (beliefs, schemas, etc.) and motivation (goals, needs) in predicting behavior (e.g., persistence of action, emotions)

5. 4 Self-regulation: how cognitions, motivations, and emotions interact RED: emotions GREEN: motivations PURPLE: cognitions

6. 5 COGNITIVE-MOTIVATIONAL THEORIES ABOUT THE SELF

7. 6 HIGGINS (1987): Real, Ideal, and Ought selves Self-discrepancy theory: We are highly motivated to reduce discrepancies between how we actually see ourselves and how we actually would like to be and how we think we ought to be. Real/Ideal discrepancies lead to feelings of depression and real/ought discrepancies to feelings of anxiety. OUGHT REAL IDEAL

8. 7 Higgins’ empirical demonstration of how real/ideal discrepancies lead to feelings of depression and real/ought discrepancies to feelings of anxiety: IDEAL PRIMING: Asking subjects to write an essay about about the qualities they would love to have (but don’t have) OUGHT PRIMING: Asking subjects to write an essay about about the qualities they think it’s their duty to have (but don’t have)

9. 8 DWECK (1990): Incremental vs. Entity self-theories PERFORMANCE GOALS LEARNING GOALS

10. 9 MIDDLE-LEVEL UNITS

11. 10 MIDDLE-LEVEL UNITS SPECIFIC, SITUATIONAL BROAD, DECONTEXTUALIZED

12. 11 advantages disadvantages LEVEL 1highly personalhighly decontextualized low B predictive value LEVEL 4highly contextualizedhighly impersonal high B predictive value LEVELS 2&3personal contextualized medium B predictive value

13. 12

14. 13 Research on Personal Strivings (Emmons, 1992)

15. 14 HAVING HIGH VS. LOW LEVEL OF STRIVINGS HAS DIFFERENT HEALTH CORRELATES !! (Emmons, 1992) Mostly High  worse mental health (e.g., more anxiety, depression) (e.g., improving this world) Mostly Low  worse physical health (e.g. more colds, headaches) (e.g., be funny) Question for the class: Why?