Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Fear as a Motivator
Are people more easily frightened than inspired? Do we do what we do because we are intrinsically motivated (meaning we have an internal desire to persue goals we perceive as worthy in and of themselves) or because we fear the consequences of not doing it? Why do you think this is?
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I feel that people are more easily frightened than inspired. These days it seems like more the statistics of you (not you mrs zeuli) being struck by a reckless driver are much greater than winning a noble prize. I am expecting lots of BUT KRISTEN, PEOPLE CAN GET INSPIRED TO DO LITTLE THINGS LIKE OPEN DOORS FOR LITTLE OLD LADIES YOU KNOW...but my opinion remains, i think that though unfortunate, it is simply human nature to stray more to the negative side of something rather than the positive. And to answer the other questions about "doing what we do", the answer depends so much on the "doing" that we "do". For instance, if the question was posed to ask why people eat ice cream cones with coffee ice cream and chocolate jimmies, well thats because they were MOTIVATED, to eat that tasty treat. But if the question was why would one go to the principal's office when told, than it would be because Mrs. mockery would most likely kick your behind down there if you refused, thus you become scared of what fierce response she would give you and not because those three morning detentions seem like a real delight.
I think that Kristen has a point when she mentioned the whole being sent to the principal situation. People definitely are motivated to do something because of the consequences of not doing them more often than when they are simply inspired to do good for goodness' sake. However, I think that from person to person, it depends on what you have been taught and told all your life. If you were sent to the principal's office and you didn't want to go, then you might just not go because you may have grown up in a situation that would make you more inclined to be rebellious. On the other hand, another person may have grown up always following and being told to follow the rules and therefore your superego just won't let you escape going to the principal's office because you would have so much guilt. How much negative consequences affects someone depends a lot upon how they have been raised and taught and their own personal mindset.
I agree with both Kristen and Laura. Like Kristen said, i feel that people are much more easily scared than inspired. However, i also agree with Laura when she says that it all depends on the certain person and how you were raised. For instance, i have not exactly been "inspired" to study for my chem quiz tomorrow, but i am scared that if i don't i will get a bad grade. Although this is true, it is not only my fear motivating me. I have a curiosity to learn, and i actually find chem interesting, however hard it maybe. In this way, you could say that i am inspired to study. I am being motivated to study both by my fear of a low grade, but also because of my personal ethics regarding schoolwork. If i didn't study, i would be frustrated and disappointed in myself, because it goes against my morals to not try my best. Again, i agree with Laura when she says that it all depends on the person. However, i believe that more often than not people are motivated, like i am, by a mixture of both fear and inspiration. Another example of this is my dance teacher, who also happens to be have her own company. She is inspired to create new choreography, but at the same time she knows if she doesn't create new pieces she will not have the money to pay her bills, which is a frightening thought. in my opinion it is a mix of fear and inspiration that motivates humans. I think that people are often motivated by fear because the consequences are often more real than the possibilities. I will borrow the example of detention from Kristen to explain this. If a kid is debating whether or not to cheat on a test, he/she would probably consider the possible outcomes. He/she could get away with it, or he/she could get caught and given detention. the idea of getting away with it is much more unlikely, where as the consequence of getting caught (detention) is a very real thing. i think that because consequences are often very "real," fear is a motivator.
I know that I am motivated to do things that make me feel good. I think we all have the internal desire to persue things that will be acknowledged in a posative way. When you have worked hard towards a goal and you achieve it, like getting a great grade on a tough test, it inspires you to contine to put forth your best effort and get another great grade. You may "study" to attain the knowledge like Cat, or you may "study" enough to not get a bad grade. Good begets good. On the other hand Laura brings up a good point about "where you are from" determines alot about why you do what you do.
I believe that people are neither more easily frightened nor more easily inspired. Like Cat said, I feel that it depends on the person. Someone living in poverty and is used to seeing horrible and frightening things everyday is more likely to be inspired than frightened. This is because they have grown to be brave and strong from being brought up around these tough conditions, and therefore are not easily scared. However, those who don't live in poverty and aren't used to witnessing frightful things are more likely to be frightened than inspired. Since they live better lives, they are used to seeing the nicer aspects and kind actions, which causes them not to be more easily inspired, but rather more easily frightened. Answering the second part of the question, I think that we do what we do because we fear the consequences of not doing something. Especially among teenagers, I feel that majority of the things we do are out of fear. For example, we study and do our homework because we fear receiving bad grades and upsetting our parents. Yes, I know this does not account for everyone, because some teenagers are motivated and have the desire to do homework, but I feel like the majority of students do what they do out of fear. Similarly, fear has the same effect on our social lives. A lot of the activities we take part in or the clothes we wear are because we fear not being accepted by others. I think that adults as well do what they do out of fear. Adults go to work because they fear not having enough money to have a stable and happy life. It is true that many adults enjoy going to work and are motivated to do so because they love their jobs, but I feel that the fear of not having a successful life/stable future is a larger effect.
I agree that fear is a motivator in many cases, but inspiration is definitely one as well. It all depends on the person, the situation, and many other factors. This argument has come up throughout history many times. In China, Confucianism said that people were inclined to do what was right, but Legalism was based on all humans being bad in nature and was built on fear of punishment. John Locke also believed man to be good in nature, and that humans would give up their natural right to everything and create a government to protect their property. Thomas Hobbes, on the other hand, believed man to be evil and selfish. Different views on society cause people to act differently. Someone who always thinks "how much can I get away with" will be motivated differently than someone who has strong morals beliefs as to what's right and whats wrong.
People can also be motivated by a mix of inspiration and fear. In the case of Hitler, he might have originally inspired people, but once the Holocaust started, people were afraid of being killed and followed to save their lives.
In the case of religion, I believe that some people are naturally good and will be inclined to do the right thing, but most religion is based in the idea that if you sin, you will go to hell. People don't want to go to hell, so they do as they're told.
I sort of agree with everyone, just because I believe that this question is unanswerable.
A general statement on all people that tells why they do what they do cannot be made.
Everyone is different, and therefore has different reasons for doing things.
I agree with Kristen, Laura, and Cat. People are definitely more motivated to do something by fear rather than inspiration. I also agree with Laura in that it also depends on the individual that is in question. People can be motivated to do things, but at the same time for a lot of the things that we have to do (such as studying for a chem quiz) there is a part of us that is motivated by fear and hopefully a part of us that is inspired to do things. I agree with Cat that a lot of the things we do are really motivated by both. I will use Kristen's example of being sent to the principals' office. If you are sent down to the principals' office you are put in a place where you have to decide what to do. Should you simply not go and risk getting in even more trouble or should you go. You are obviously going to be motivated a lot by fear. That is a given. But you may also be motivated to go because it is against your personal morals to not follow the rules. Someone may be inspired to "do the right thing" and not break the rules. You will also be fueled by that fear of the consequences of not going. I think that this is part of human nature. It is natural to fear things that are going to get you in trouble. But at the same time, I also think that humans can be inspired to do many things. I agree with Cat that more then usual people act on a mixture of both fear and inspiration. There are times where a choice or action are completely fueled by one or the other, but I think a lot of the time, as Cat said, it is a combination of both.
I agree with the popular opinion of people being motivated by fear but I also agree with Jamie in that it is also common to see self-motivation. Right away I thought of homework as a major example of this like Jamie had. Students end up completing homework or doing it because they are afraid of how it will affect there grade or the measure of disappointment from their teacher. The fear drives us to accomplishing many tasks, not just homework. Other examples could be cleaning our room for parents or playing well in a sport because of what a coach may think. The consequences to these wrong doings are not something you would look forward too and therefore are motivated to carry them out. I also, agree with Laura in that it depends how you have been raised and what your morals are.
Michael brings up a good point in that answering this question is very difficult because of the various people.
Overall, I think it is a combination of both types of inspiration, neither stronger or more common than the other
I think I am in agreement with most people here, but I definitely agree with Michael when he said that this question is difficult to answer because it really depends on the person. I think it also really depends on the situation, like in Catherine's "cheating" scenario. I think whether or not you are more motivated by fear depends a lot on the consequences of your possible actions and also, like Jamie said, how you were brought up. If you were brought up being rebellious and in a difficult situation, then something like detention or someone being mad at you might not influence your actions like it would for other people. Overall, I think this is a difficult question to answer because it really depends on the person. I think these forces are equally great, but situations and possible consequences are also very influential.
I agree with Kristen and all the others who have followed her, in that fear is more influential on people than is inspiration. Human nature is to be lazy and to get by doing the bare minimum that we deem necessary for survival. Though some people seem to be more inspired than others, they simply have higher expectations of what survival is than others do. As Peter says in Office Space, "I want to do nothing". This sentiment, I believe, is shared by all of humanity. The only reason that most people do not act on it is because we are afraid of being deemed a failure. Michael brings morality into, in the form of confucianism, Hobbes, etc. Personally, I disagree with this. He says that some people are more inspired than others because they have stronger morals, but personally I believe that such people are just more strongly influenced by fear. I also disagree with his and Cat's statement that people act ona mix of fear and inspiration, because while some people are occasionally inspired, the majority of people are pushed to act on fear. This then makes fear a good thing, because it is what keeps people from wasting their lives and being total jerks; which is a little wierd, because fear is of course not a good thing. So I guess, when it comes down to it, I can only speak for myself, and say that the only reason I do anything I do is because I feel that I must, not becuase I am inspired to.
I agree with most that people are more easily frightened than inspired. I think people mostly fear the unknown and failure, and there is a lot of that in our world as opposed to encouraging situations. Just look at the news. There are many negative events, but not that many positive. In order to make it on to the news for something good it has to be pretty big and many people won’t attempt something like that because they are afraid of failure: a fear. Having a fear is typical, but if you are inspired and do something great people make a big deal about it. I think that both motivation and fear play a part in why we do what we do. Often times it seems as though they overlap and influence each other. “Little acts of kindness” is often time self-motivated. You have a sense of what is morally right and choose to act on it just because of that. However, far too often our fears drive us to take certain actions. When we don’t understand something new different, or just confusing, or we see the possibility of disappointment we let our fear take over.
People have made good points on both sides about people's positive and negative motivations, but I think it is impossible to say that one motivation is more common that the other. Hey, people often act out of both fear and inspiration, seeing both a carrot ahead and stick behind. Both motivations exist, and I think in equal levels. We would like to see more inspired people that frightened people, but to say that people act out of one or the other almost seems like a version of the manichaenism (that might be how it's spelled) of separating the world into black and white while grey is a possible shade. I found both Evelyn's and Cat's points valid, though they made opposite arguments. It is true that one may work to achieve the satisfaction of getting a good grade, Like Evelyn said, while others may just work to achieve out of fear of a bad grade. Both situations exist, but they are not so opposite as to be incompatible. One person could easily work to get good grade because of the carrot and the stick at the same time.
i agree with several of my classmates in their opinions that it is easier to be ridden with fear as a result of a situation, as opposed to being inspired by it. it takes a strong person to be able to take any difficult situation and turn it around to see the light and use the knowledge that they gained, and in many ways we are hard pressed to find those kinds of people, who do the right thing in a constant manner. on the other question it is my belief that in certain cases we are internally motivated to do things, whether they are considered to be good or considered to be bad, in some cases we just listen to the little voice inside our heads and go along with it. however there are cases in which it is motivation or force from another which stands as the only factor for our choice to do something. thus in both questions the answers and actions depend fully on the person and the scenario and thus it is hard to give a simple answer when the reality is so complex.
My belief is similar to that of Caleb’s that there is never a true sign pointing to the definite factor of people’s motivation. As Jamie mentioned, different upbringings can bring about different motivations, but in the end I think it depends on a person’s judgment of what is important in life. In the case of doing homework, many will do it out of fear, and some will do it to better understand a concept, but it boils down to what one finds is important, and motivation will follow. If someone really believed that doing the homework would further their knowledge of a concept, then they might be inspired to achieve. But if homework seemed cumbersome and time wasting, I think that fear would be the only motivator left to get the homework done. I think that most people are intrinsically motivated because in many of life’s situations, you hold the will to do something. Most of the time no one is forcing you to do something, and therefore internal desire to achieve goals overrides a fear which would basically dictate your whole life. I think most people go through life in the attempt to be happy, and living in a constant fear is clearly not achieving happiness or working towards it, and therefore I think people seek inspiration in life to achieve what they value.
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