Psychogenic motives are also called general motives. These motives do not arise either because of learning or homeostatic imbalance. Some psychogenic motives are:
(1) Exploration, (2) curiosity, (3) need for sensory stimulation, (4) manipulation, (5) contact-comfort or affection motive, (6) competence, (7) fear and (8) self- actualisation. We shall explain these motives in brief.
1. Exploration:
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Human beings as well as animals like to explore their environment. When an organism actively moves about and satisfies curiosity, the motive is said to be exploration.
We spend a great amount of time exploring novel situations and places than exploring familiar ones. It is this motive that makes us visit different places. In mountaineers and explorers, this motive is highly active.
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2. Curiosity:
Interest in novel situations is called curiosity motive. All scientific discoveries and inventions by men are the result of this motive. This motive is common among animals and human beings. Once a curiosity motive is satisfied interest in a given task may decline.
3. Need for sensory stimulation:
Human beings as well as animals engage in activities that give them sensory stimulation. It is because of this need that we view television and movies or listen to music or indulge in dancing. Lack of sensory stimulation is unpleasant and leads to abnormal behaviour.
4. Manipulation:
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It is very similar to curiosity and exploratory motive; it refers to the motive to handle new objects out of curiosity to know more about them. Children indulge in manipulation motive by tearing books, separating the different parts of toys, or opening boxes to see what they contain.
5. Contact-comfort or Affection Motive:
It is the motive to receive and shower affection on others. This motive is independent of the physiological motive of sex. We show affection to our parent’s brothers, sisters and relatives. Husband and wife show affection to each other and to their children. Affection motive brings us in contact with others and gives us comfort. Hence, it is also called the ‘contact-comfort’ motive.
In a study conducted by Harlow, baby monkeys were separated from their real mothers and provided with mother surrogates, one artificial mother was made of wire mesh. This was the ‘wire mother’. The other was made of wool covered with sponge, rubber and soft cloth. This was the ‘cloth mother’ Feeding bottles were fitted at the centre of the breast of each mother. Half of the monkeys were fed by the wire mother and the other half by the cloth mother.
The time the young monkeys spent with each mother was recorded. It was found that the monkeys spent more time with the cloth mother than with the wire mother. The cloth mother, being soft, resembled the real mother more than the wire mother did and contact with this mother was comforting to the young ones.
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Other similar studies have found that contact with a mother-like object reduces fear and gives confidence to the individual to explore the environment.
6. Competence:
It refers to the motive to master challenges in the environment. It plays an important role in human behaviour. This motive can be observed very easily in children. Very young children are learning to master various developmental tasks like standing, walking, talking, etc. They make efforts to master these tasks. When a baby successfully pulls itself up to stand, it gives out a cry of triumph. This shows the satisfaction it has derived through mastering the act of standing. This type of motive is found in human adults also.
A concept that is closely related to competence motivation is intrinsic motivation. It is defined as a ‘person’s need for feeling competent and self- determining in dealing with hi? environment’. It gives internal satisfaction to the person.
7. Fear:
It is a negative motive that makes an organism withdraw from a given situation. Fear, in some situations, helps us to avoid danger. In other situations, fear hinders adjustment and interferes with the satisfaction of other motives.
8. Self-actualisation:
It is the highest motive in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. It refers to the need for self-fulfilment, to realise potentialities and to become what one is capable of becoming. Very few individuals are able to satisfy this motive. Satisfaction of this move is a sign of healthy adjustment.