Motivation

Markus and Kitayama (1991) proposed that culture shapes an independent or interdependent self which has an impact on psychological and cognitive factors. This also has an influence on achievement motivation and emotion. 

Plaut and Markus (2004) they argue that motivation fundamentally shaped and grounded within a culture. 

Inside story: which is a prevalent model of motivation in a western context, as it painta motivation inside the person. This is consistent with internal and dispositional attributions of the self. When people make internal or dispositional attributions to locate causes of behaviour within the person, they assume the person is powered from within internal attributes. 

For example, if a teacher is looking over the students grades from an exam, they would assume that the student done well by putting in a lot of work and was motivated compared to a student who performed poorly and would assume they did not put in hard work. This is subject to fundamental attribution error, not taking into account situational factors. 

Outside story is connected to a non-western model of motivation. The interdependent self predominates outside the self, located at the intersection of the self and important others. People who are ascribed to the outside story of motivation are more likley to make external and situational attributes. 

For example, the teacher looking at the exam grades may assume that those performed well was because their parents inflicted motivation or that they worked well in study groups with friends compared to someone who performed badly could have been sick or had a part time job and was not able to have enough time to study highlighting that motivation was obstructed. 

The western model of the self is heavily immersed in the saying that it's what's inside that counts, the force from within. People are seen as powered by enthusiasm, interests, ambition, drive and motivation. Motivation is conceptualised as an internal attribute of the independent self. The inside story corresponds with the metaphor that the individual is as a machine, powred from within, and creates an impact on the environment. 

A person has to motivate themselves, not motivated by things outside of the self. There is a huge emphasis on the inside story in the Western culture, internal motivation emphasised in North America and Western Europe. 

Self-made person is reflected in role models such as Alan Sugar, you need ambition to be successful. The self-made person icon is also rooted in the Protestant work ethic, pursuing one's calling and personal responsibility and interla attributions. 

Middle class westerners believe that success is under one's personal control. Working class are less likely to ascribe to the inside story. Material realities depend on others. Middle class westerners are likley to hold that ambition and energy signify moral fibre. They blame lack of success on character flaws. 

What is inside requires the outside environment to thrive. An example is the metaphor 'individual as a root' as to grow it needs surrounding environment to survive. 

John Locke's tabula rasa people are born as a blank slate. Education is an external force that determines success rather than an innate trait of intelligence.

Motivated to meet external demands, there is a desire to meet expectations of others and fulfil role obligations. For example, an individual may work hard in school to meet expectations of their parents. 

Cultures tend to differ in the extent to which they stress individual motivation and social motivation.

Individual motivation: emphasised in individualistic cultures. Achievement pursued for individual glory. Hard work benefits the self only, does not benefit the members of the in-group. If a student is hard working and gets good grades this confirms inner attributes that they are smart. 

Social motivation: this is most common outside of western context. It reflects desire for status and social harmony. Hard work benefits one's in-group. If one member decides to get ahead in life it is to benefit the group and make their family proud they are not doing it for themselves. In this context, individual motivation is seen as egotistical as it only benefits the self. 

Parents pressure children to do well in school to uphold the family honour, reputation and status. 

Achievement motivation positively correlated with filial piety for east Asians, but not for westerners. In contrast, in the north Americans, individuals pursue goals for themselves not for their parents. They are individually motivated rather than socially motivated. 

This is the view that basic needs for autonomy, relatedness and competence. Needs for autonomy and competence satisfied by activities that are intrinsically rewarding. Work is inherently satisfying and driven by interest. This intrinsic motivation is a type of individual motivation. This is emphasised in western cultures. 

Extrinsic motivation is motivated by external rewards rather than because activities themselves are enjoyable. External rewards include money, approval, power, expectations of others. Extrinsic motivation is a type of social motivation and reflects the outside story. 

Intrinsic motivation: live to work a job you love doing

Extrinsic motivation: work to live by doing a job that pays well and has external benefits

Westerners view extrinsic motivation as undermining intrinsic motivation. For example, paying children to read books reduces motivation. 

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are mutually exclusive and both cannot occur at the same time. 

But self-sacrifice may be inherently rewarding for the interdependent self. Greater overlap between intrinsic and extrinsic. This results in higher self-esteem and rewarding that you are helping others. 

Choice increases intrinsic motivation for westerners. They enjoy the task more if they are able to choose it. America is a country of choice, they report enjoying the task more. Lack of choice reduces intrinsic motivation for instance, in an exam if there is a choice of questions to choose from the student will enjoy it more. 

Rozin et al (2006) found that there was a higher percentage for preferences of 50 flavours over 10 ice-cream flavours in the USA & UK were around 50% compared to Switzerland was just below 30%. 

Iyengar and Lepper (1991) Anglo American children performed best and spent more time on tasks that they chose themselves. Asian American children performed best and spent more time on tasks that they thought were chosen for them by their mothers. 

Primary control: Motivated to change the world to suit the SELF 

Secondary control: Motivated to change the self to suit the WORLD

Primary and secondary control was examined by Weisz, Rothbaum and Blackburn and found that primary control was emphasised in the west whereas secondary control was recognised in the east. 

Primary control is more present in the middle class. Westerners they have a luxury of choice whereas less primary control in the working class westerners. This shows that there is a relationship between socioeconomic culture and control. 

Primary control is a function of more than just economic development. Collectivism engenders more social constraints and primary control seen as immature. 

Yamaguchi (2001) found that indirect primary control or proxy control. Exert control through a third person common in Japan. 

Psychotherapy reflects primary control as Freud stated psychoanalysis is a battle in which we must make ourselves masters the symptoms and resolves them. 

In contrast, Morita therapy reflects secondary control. The goal is not to alter symptoms but to alter the client's perspective on them so they can accept them as they are. This is common in Japan.

Personal attributes are fixed, in born characteristics of independent self. This consistent with the inside story. 

Attributes are malleable, can be changed with effort. 

Characteristics of the interdependent self.

Consistent with the outside story.

Japanese and east Asians held the view that change is due to effort. 

No matter who you are, you can still do well if effort is put in as intelligence is not innate due to the incremental theory of the self. This reflects the outside story. 

European Canadians persisted more after success than after failure. If the individual believes intelligence is hard wired, innate and fixed the person will have very little motivation to improve a poor ability reflecting the entity theory.

Japanese persisted more after failure than after success reflecting the incremental theory. They believed effort can change the future outcome and that intelligence is not fixed but based on hard work. If you fail one test, you can put more effort and succeed. 

Westerners are more likely to focus on their strengths to self-enhancement motives, confirming the inside story. 

Non-westerners focus on self-improvement motives, desire to improve the self to meet expected roles and goals, expectations of other people, this is reflecting the outside story, people are self-critical in order for self-improvement 

Japanese do not attribute failure to lack of ability but rather lack of effort. If a child gets a B, the Chinese mother would get out all the practice papers and demand perfect grades because they believe that their child can get them. If the child does not achieve the perfect grades they think it is because the child did not work hard enough.

When parents praised toddler's efforts rather than inherent abilities they were more likely to show at ages 7-8 years old that they enjoy challenges, show better problem solving and think they could improve their abilities through hard work. 

Strive to promote success, rewards, focus on success to strive for advancement. Independent self is linked to promotion focus. You have to promote inner attributes in order for others to recognise it. 

Promotion focus of westerners means that they should be more motivated by positive role models and want to be like them. 

Prevention orientation strives to prevent failure, losses. Focuses on weaknesses to avoid failure. This is strongly connected to the interdependent self. Prevention focus, avoid risks and avoid sticking out from the group in order to prevent letting anyone down. 

prevention focus of east Asians means that they are more motivated by negative role models striving to not become like them and avoiding that happening. 

East Asians were more motivated by a negative role model. Western Europeans were motivated by positive role models.