MyPage: Julia B.

By maclink on January 20, 2011 9:02 AM | 16 Comments
This is Julia's page where she will document her work in the course.

16 Comments

Author Profile Page Jbower2523 | January 26, 2011 2:34 PM | Reply

Chapter 1/2

In chapter 1, I found the concept of intensity to be very interesting. Motivation is a part of everybody’s everyday life but you don’t really think about it broken down. I feel like the intensity of a motive is a strong indicator of whether or not someone will complete their goal or do anything, for that matter.

Based solely off my understanding of one chapter, motivation is a complex, underlying thing inside every single person that will determine how their lives turn out. There are several different types of motivation and also different ways to express it.

I think everything in this chapter is very memorable. Because it’s only chapter 1, it lays out the foundation for what the rest of the class will be like and I find all the topics to be very interesting and intriguing.

Author Profile Page Jbower2523 | January 26, 2011 2:35 PM | Reply

Topical Blog 1

I found the blogs in the procrastination topic very interesting. Up until this school year, I was a huge procrastinator. I’ve had 10 page papers to write and wouldn’t start them until the day before it’s due, maybe two days if I’m feeling productive. I’ve never really thought about the underlying reasons why I might procrastinate. The blogs discuss articles that give several reasons such as being a perfectionist, disorganize, overwhelmed, or simply finding the assignment boring. I think the main reason why I procrastinated is because even though I start and finished the assignment the night before it’s due, I always got a good grade on it. I figured there’s no point in starting it earlier if I’d get a good grade either way. I’m still trying to figure out what clicked in me this year to start my assignments earlier, but I think some of it simply has to do with maturing. I’ve learned that getting an assignment done days before it’s due is much less stressful and then I have more time to do things I want to do. I’ve also realized that studying the day before a test is not enough time to learn all the information that could be on the test and giving myself more time to study increases the likelihood that I’ll get a better grade. Getting good grades is an intrinsic motivation for me and once I realized that hard work equals better grades, that motivation increased.

Some other topics I found interesting are “Kissing = FUN” under sex, and “11 Items that Kill Intimacy” under relationships.

Author Profile Page Jbower2523 | January 26, 2011 2:35 PM | Reply

Chapter 3

Chapter three discusses the several parts of the brain that play a role in motivation and emotion. These parts include the hypothalamus, medial forebrain bundle, orbitofrontal cortex, amygdala, septo-hippocampal circuit, anterior cingulate cortex, reticular formation, prefrontal cortex, neurotransmitters, and other hormones. Each part influences why we feel motivated to do something and why we act on those feelings. They also differ in what type of motivation they effect. For example, the orbitofrontal cortex effects what decisions you make. Another example is hormones. There are many different hormones but there are three that are crucial to motivation and emotion: cortisol, testosterone, and oxytocin. Cortisol is the stress hormone that is activated when faced with stressful situations such as public speaking. Testosterone is linked with sexual motivation and is highly involved in events dealing with sex and mating. Oxytocin is associated with bonding and is released in situations where support and nurturance is needed. The main point of the chapter is to understand that the brain has a huge influence on why we do things and how we feel about them.

The information I found most surprising was about testosterone. I found it interesting that men in relationships/married have lower levels of testosterone than men who aren't married/in a relationship. However, it does make sense because men not in a relationship need to have higher levels of testosterone so they are more motivated to find a partner. It makes me wonder if the study that documented those findings tried to find similar findings in women. I also found it interesting that men who just generally have high levels of testosterone can be linked to having more affairs and that men with low levels are better at parenting.

I would like to learn more about the orbitofrontal cortex versus the anterior cingulate cortex. The book states that both of them are involved in decision making but what's the difference?

After reading this chapter, my understanding of motivation has changed in that I can see how it's such a complex concept. There are so many aspects involved that open up the concept of motivation and make it for a fascinating thing to learn about.

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