Achievement Motivation

Obesity

[Name of the Writer]

[Name of the Institution]

Achievement Motivation

The primary component to ensure success and outstanding performance in any field is motivation, especially intrinsic motivation. This factor becomes more essential in the case of sports where both physical and mental effectiveness is required to achieve the desired goals. High spirit for teamwork is also required so that each member of the team can perform well and work towards the collective success of the whole team.

There are multiple theories in psychology that elaborate the process of motivation and various factors which contribute to motivate an individual. Some of the examples of such theories are Maslow’s need hierarchy, Alderfer’s ERG Theory, McClelland’s achievement motivation, Hertzberg’s two-factor theory, and Attribution Theory. Attribution Theory refers to the assumptions of the individuals that they perceive various situations and events (Shaver, 2016). This theory explains that people are bound to assign causes to the actions and behavior of others as well as to their own behavior.

Attribution theory was initially presented by a Gestalt psychologist Fritz Heider in the early 20th century, and he is often titled as the "father of the attribution theory." Although attribution theory has undergone various advancements and changes since its introduction, the initial idea is still credited to Heider. Attribution theory can further be divided into two types; External and Internal. External attribution refers to holding external factors, which are beyond an individual’s control, responsible for the occurrence of any event or incident. It is also known as “Locus of Causality." On the other hand, internal attribution means to attribute internal factors for any event or incident. These factors are usually under the control of an individual and also called "Locus of Control."

Attribution theory can also be very helpful in the perception of success and failure in the case of sports (Graham, & Folkes, 2014). This theory comes in help to explain how players and sportsperson perceive their own and other people’s, especially teammates' behaviors, for the success or failure of a particular match. Both the types of attribution theory come into use by the individuals when they analyze and attribute various factors.

In the case of Lucille, it can be seen that once she was a highly motivated and successful player, who had lucid dreams and goals. The motivating factors that worked in her case were outcome goals; which meant that results and outcomes motivated her. She had a dream of becoming the toughest and fastest soccer player who wanted to score the maximum goals. It can be clearly seen that Lucille was a brilliant soccer player, which is why she got a scholarship on the basis of sports quota.

Both the types of external and internal attribution of reasons can be seen in this case as the subject is seen blaming injuries, field conditions, playing time, and teammates for not passing the ball. The example of internal attribution can be taken as the injuries, which are under the control of Lucille. She can try and control the number of injuries to the maximum extent. In addition, she can also try that the already existing injuries heal as quickly as possible by getting the best possible medication.

The external attribution or the Locus of causality, in this case, can be seen as the player blames the field conditions, the playing times, other team mate’s behavior and other such conditions for her own low self-esteem and less motivation. This can be reduced by counseling and proper mental makeup of the subject that these factors are not that much significant and they should never be able to affect her performance. Counseling or motivation session can be done by her mentor or her game coach in the college and will prove highly effective to motivate and boost her up.

References

Graham, S., & Folkes, V. S. (2014). Attribution theory: Applications to achievement, mental health, and interpersonal conflict. Psychology Press.

Shaver, K. G. (2016). An introduction to attribution processes. Routledge.