Download Motivation and biology

Motivation and biology
Why do we like certain content?
• Nature v. nurture
• Overall population tendencies v. individual
differences
Evolution
• What is the overall theory of evolution?
– Individuals within a given species vary on a number of
traits
– The traits have ‘survival value’—that is, some
individuals are able better to survive and procreate
based on their traits
– The traits are passed down to their offspring, who are
also better able to survive
– Over time, the more ‘fit’ come to make up a larger
proportion of the population and the species changes
Sociobiology
• Behavior reflects the biological inheritance
of the species
• Behavioral tendencies can have survival
value
– This appears to have special impact on
procreation
Why do women and men
act the way they do?
• Men and women have different roles in
procreation
– Obviously
• Those roles imply conflict in sexual
behavior
• Sexual behavior is also strongly influenced
by culture
• However, culture is affected by
evolution/biological determinism as well
So . . .
• The goal of each generation is to extend
its genetic distribution in the next
generation
– “selfish genes”
• For men, because they can have lots and
lots of children in rapid order, the goal is to
impregnate as many women as they can
get their hands on and then move on
– “love ‘em and leave ‘em”
• On the other hand, women are stuck for at
least 9 months and probably significantly
longer, and are unlikely to be able to
protect the child when then next male
arrives.
– Examples of cannibalism, child murder in the
animal kingdom
• Men also want to see their progeny
survive to reproductive age, so . . .
• They will remain and protect their children
and accept that they can impregnate fewer
females
– Harem as a compromise
– Marriage/monogamy as the extreme example
Why do men want good-looking
young women?
• Physical attractiveness and youth signal
likely success of childbirth and child
rearing
Why do women want rich men?
• The indication of having plenty of food to
eat attracts women who must survive
pregnancy and breastfeeding as well as
see to it that their children are fed until
they are old enough to care for themselves
What has this got to do with
electronic media?
• Many of the findings of content analyses of
entertainment products seem to follow the
rules of sociobiology
– Listen to Jay Leno’s monologue once and
you’d think he wrote the book
What has this got to do with
electronic media?
• Ohler and Nieding argue that
entertainment has survival value,
especially as a form of attracting fit mates
– Big brains have survival value
– Entertainment is a marker for intelligence
What else has this got to do with
electronic media
• Vorderer, Steen and Chan argue that
entertainment is our inherited form of play,
which had survival value but might not
anymore—that is, when play developed it
was a way to prepare for a tiger trying to
eat you
• “Tag” as practice in predation and escape
– Play had to be intrinsically motivating
Intrinsic motivation
• Ryan and Deci’s self-determination theory
– Competence
– Autonomy
– Relatedness