Yerkes Dodson's Law of Motivation. The Yerkes-Dodson Law or why motivation can be harmful? Concept of optimum motivation Yerkes Dodson's law

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We talk a lot about efficiency and performance and are accustomed to believing that the best results are achieved with the highest level of motivation, but is this true? How motivated should a person be to achieve maximum success? The Yerkes-Dodson Act provides answers to these questions.

What is the essence of the law?

The Yerkes-Dodson Law states that the best results are achieved with an average level of motivation. That is, there is a limit (optimum motivation) up to which motivation grows and after which it begins to decline. Visually this can be represented as a parabola:

Image: https://blogintroverta.ru

In fact, the Yerkes-Dodson Act includes two laws. The first of them is described above, and the second says that the higher the complexity of the task being performed, the lower the optimal level of motivation, and vice versa: the lower the complexity, the stronger the optimal motivation. You will understand why this is so when you read about the reasons for the maximum effectiveness of average motivation.

Why the Yerkes-Dodson Act Works

Back in 1908, Yerkes and Dodson, in the course of experiments, found that when teaching animals to go through a maze, the most effective is the average degree of motivation (motivation was determined by the intensity of electric shocks). Why is this happening?

Until the optimum point is reached, motivation grows according to laws known to all: the stronger the need to complete a task, the better we cope with it.

But after reaching the optimum point, we begin to experience emotional stress: we worry, tense, experience. And, of course, due to these circumstances, our productivity drops. Therefore, the higher the motivation after the optimum point, the worse we cope with the task.

Practical application of the Yerkes-Dodson law

We have already talked about experiments with animals, but research was carried out not only with them. Of course, people were not taught to go through a maze and were not shocked, but the pattern that Yerkes and Dodson talk about was also revealed in relation to humans.

People were asked to complete a task for a certain material reward. As the amount grew, the interest of the participants also increased, and they coped with the task better. But up to a certain point.

When the reward amount became large enough, people began to get nervous and worried, which prevented them from coping with the task. This experience confirmed the validity of the Yerkes-Dodson law.

It was experimentally determined that for simple tasks the optimal motivation is 7-8 points on a ten-point scale, for tasks of average complexity - about five points, for difficult tasks - 2-3 points.

In view of the above, pay attention to what level of motivation you need to achieve.

For example, if you are a boss and entrust some difficult task to your subordinate, then “motivating” him by dismissing him or depriving him of a bonus in case of failure will not be the best solution. Such motivation will only hinder the completion of a difficult task.

And don't forget to watch how you motivate yourself. Perhaps somewhere you lack motivation, or perhaps somewhere there is too much of it. Strive to achieve the optimum to achieve the best results!

Yerkes-Dodson law

Shows the dependence of the quality (productivity) of the activity performed on the intensity (level) of motivation. First J. -D. h. states that as the intensity of motivation increases, the quality of activity changes along a bell-shaped curve: first it increases, then, after passing through the point of the highest indicators of activity success, it gradually decreases. The level of motivation at which the activity is performed as successfully as possible is called the optimum motivation. According to the second J.-D. h., the more difficult the activity performed is for the subject, the lower the level of motivation is optimal for it. The laws were discovered by American psychologists R. M. Yerkes and J. D. Dodson in 1908 while studying the dependence of learning on the strength of reinforcement (electric shock) in mice. Subsequently, the laws were confirmed by material from other types of activity and motivation in both animals and humans.

Brief psychological dictionary. - Rostov-on-Don: “PHOENIX”. L.A. Karpenko, A.V. Petrovsky, M. G. Yaroshevsky. 1998 .

Yerkes-Dodson law

   YERKES-DODSON ACT (With. 292)

In 1908, the famous American psychologist R. Yerkes, together with J.D. Dodson conducted a relatively simple experiment that demonstrated the dependence of the productivity of the activity performed on the level of motivation. The identified pattern was called the Yerkes-Dodson law, has been experimentally confirmed many times and is recognized as one of the few objective, indisputable psychological phenomena.

There are actually two laws. The essence of the first is as follows. As the intensity of motivation increases, the quality of activity changes along a bell-shaped curve: first it increases, then, after passing through the point of the highest success rates, it gradually decreases. The level of motivation at which the activity is performed as successfully as possible is called the optimum motivation.

According to the second Yerkes-Dodson law, the more difficult the activity performed is for the subject, the lower the level of motivation is optimal for it.

Yerkes himself always gravitated towards anthropomorphism, did not draw fundamental differences between the behavior of animals and people, and easily saw analogies that were far from indisputable. Sometimes this sounded naive, but in relation to the law he discovered it turned out to be absolutely fair.

The experiment was repeated in humans and showed similar results. The experimental material was puzzles, and the motivating stimulus was a monetary reward (the amount of the reward for the correct solution, initially insignificant, gradually increased to a very significant one). And this is what was discovered.

People worked half-heartedly for a purely symbolic gain, and the results were poor. As the reward increased, so did the enthusiasm; the results improved accordingly. However, at a certain point, when the possibility of winning reached a considerable value, enthusiasm grew into excitement, and performance results decreased. Thus, it turned out that weak motivation is not sufficient for success, but excessive motivation is also harmful, since it generates unnecessary excitement and fussiness.

It seems that the authors of popular self-help guides to life success are poorly versed in psychology. The slogan they put forward, “Focus all of yourself on the desired goal,” is not entirely accurate. Of course, you need to have a goal, you need to strive for it. But we must not forget that obsession with a goal can also do a disservice.

Robert Yrks

Popular psychological encyclopedia. - M.: Eksmo. S.S. Stepanov. 2005.

See what the “Yerkes-Dodson law” is in other dictionaries:

Yerkes-Dodson law- a generalization according to which task difficulty and arousal are related to each other as follows: for difficult tasks, a low level of arousal improves their performance in comparison with a high level of arousal. In turn, with simple... ...

YERKES-DODSON LAW- A generalization that task difficulty and arousal interact such that for difficult tasks, low levels of arousal improve performance relative to high levels, but for easy tasks the opposite is true... ... Explanatory dictionary of psychology

- (English: Yerkes Dodson law) empirical generalization, originally established by Amer. psychologists Yerkes and Dodson (1908) in experiments on animals (rats), regarding the influence of the strength of motivation (level of arousal) on the effectiveness of activity when ... ...

This law states that for most tasks, performance gradually increases with increasing activation level to the point where any further increase in activation results in decreased performance. Optimal level... ... Great psychological encyclopedia

Yerkes-Dodson Law

Yerkes-Dodson Law- Yerkes Dodson's Law in psychology is the dependence of the best results on the average intensity of motivation. There is a certain limit beyond which a further increase in motivation leads to worse results. Scientists back in 1908... ... Wikipedia

law of optimal motivation (Yerkes-Dodson law)- the law of dependence of the effectiveness of an individual’s activity on the strength of his motivation (activation of the nervous system) for this activity. Graphically, this law can be represented as follows: where: W – level of motivation in conventional units; Q – efficiency… … Encyclopedic Dictionary of Psychology and Pedagogy

Establishing the dependence of the quality (productivity) of the activity performed on the intensity (level) of motivation. Discovered by American psychologists R. M. Yerkes and J. D. Dodson while studying the dependence of learning on the strength of reinforcement in mice... Great psychological encyclopedia

Yerkes-Dodson Act- Yerkes Dodson's Law in psychology is the dependence of the best results on the average intensity of motivation. There is a certain limit beyond which a further increase in motivation leads to worse results. Scientists back in 1908... ... Wikipedia

Yerkes Law- Yerkes Dodson's Law in psychology is the dependence of the best results on the average intensity of motivation. There is a certain limit beyond which a further increase in motivation leads to worse results. Scientists back in 1908... ... Wikipedia

Hello,

Dear readers and guests of my blog!

It turns out that there is a psychological law that can explain our failures in business and failures in the projects we start!

This is the Yerkes-Dodson law. And he is mute in the article.

Very often, people striving to achieve something significant in life and aiming for success ask questions:

how to manage motivation?How does a low level of motivation affect? and how to reduce this negative impact?

At the same time, the majority believes that the basis of any failure, any failure to achieve a goal and failure to complete assigned tasks (or their poor performance) there is weak motivation.

But few people know that the cause of failures, abandoned halfway through, and unachieved goals can be extremely strong motivation, an excessive level of perseverance and diligence

Everyone knows the phenomenon when an excellent student who knows everything fails the exam, but a C student who skips classes, who only took up the textbook last night, passes it successfully.

Or another common example.

Many people who want to lose extra pounds, charged with perseverance and unbending will, spend enormous effort, time and money, but never achieve their cherished goal.

And even if they succeed at something, they don’t manage to stay at the coveted minimum weight point for long.

Or one more example.

A teenager, having once watched the performance of a famous athlete, decided.

I started training intensively, spending days in the gym, participating in competitions, and even winning them.

But after several months of extremely hard training, he quits playing sports and never remembers them again.

Many employers are faced with the so-called paradoxical behavior of employees, when, with an increase in material rewards for work, the efficiency of employees drops significantly because their motivation decreases.

At the same time, they cause stress and emotional tension between management and employees, which further worsens the situation.

In addition, most managers do not know how.

Similar examples of decreased motivation Not achieving a set goal, quitting in the middle of things, projects previously started with great enthusiasm, a great many can be cited.

As a rule, such failures are explained by weak will and low level of motivation.

Of course, in some cases this is true. But in others everything is exactly the opposite, - It's all due to too much motivation.

Yerkes-Dodson Act

(The essence and history of the discovery)

In 1908, scientists John Dodson and Robert Yerkes trained rats to navigate a maze.

They found that with increased motivation, the accuracy and speed of performing an action increases, but this cannot last indefinitely.

When motivation reaches a certain level and becomes too great, the quality and speed of the actions performed begin to deteriorate.

When an experiment was conducted on people, the same pattern emerged. A group of subjects were asked to solve puzzle problems, they were paid money for the correct solution, this was.

The amount grew from task to task. It is clear that the motivation of the subjects also increased. For small sums they worked reluctantly, sluggishly and waddledly, but as the sums became more attractive, the motivation and desire to solve more problems as quickly as possible grew.

And so, when the amount of the monetary incentive became excessive, which was expressed in excessive stress, anxiety, and fear that “such a big jackpot could elude me,” the speed of solving problems and the quality of the solutions themselves began to decline sharply.

Too much motivation causes people to become unmotivated, which negatively affects their level of motivation.

What conclusion can be drawn from this?

Right! Weak motivation is insufficient to effectively carry out actions and achieve set goals.

But excessive, too strong motivation also interferes with this. Hence, to achieve success you need an optimal level of motivation.

In other words, as a rule, where we want something too much, extremely want to achieve something, failure awaits us.

What is the optimum or optimal level of motivation?

This is the level of motivation that most contributes to effective performance and promotes success.

Let's consider this using the example of an athlete who wants to win the title of Master of Sports and a woman who wants to reduce her weight from 80 to 65 kilograms.

Let's say they set these goals for themselves, developed action programs and began to implement them.

By the beginning of implementation, their motivation was at the optimal level. Here are its signs.

Signs of achieving optimum

motivation

• interest in the activity being performed and in the goal is maintained and even intensified;
• a stable ;
• the desire to complete the work efficiently and achieve the goal is dominant;
• performing actions, activities proceed evenly and in an organized manner, without forcing events;
• adequate (objective, conscious and rational) reactions to the behavior of competitors (in the case of an athlete, these are his rivals, in the case of a woman, for example, her friend);
• , creative determination and desire for action.

But at some point their motives, i.e. the desire to improve one's social status and the desire to become attractive become excessive and begin to put very strong pressure on the heroes of our story.

This is facilitated by both external pressure, for example, from friends and a coach, and internal coercion - extreme efforts of will.

All this leads to a violation of the optimum motivation. Here are the signs of this:

Signs of loss of optimal

level motivation And

• unnecessary tension increases when, instead of enthusiasm and determination, it appears;
• there is a desire to finish the job faster at the expense of quality
• subjective and emotionally conditioned haste, the desire to force events, or even abandon everything altogether;
• for failure to complete the task and Not achieving a goal (an obsessive thought may appear: “What if something happens and I won’t succeed”);
• errors appear when performing actions;
• the first signs of aggression towards others and towards oneself appear, ;
• the goal and activities to achieve it begin to cause hostility;
• the role of strong-willed qualities increases, instead of enthusiasm, there is a need to force oneself to strive towards the goal;

It's not hard to imagine what will happen next.

The level of motivation of our fictional characters will begin to plummet, and their progress towards the goal will be greatly slowed down, or they will completely abandon these goals.

Knowing the Yerkes-Dodson Law, what advice would we give our characters to better manage their motivation?

Ways to maintain optimal motivation

1. Reconsider your priorities. Is it really so vitally important to achieve your goal and get what you want? What is behind such a strong desire? Doesn't it reduce it?
2. Is your life impoverished? If you don’t learn, maybe it’s not your goal and not your business?
3. Use less negative motivational incentives, such as punishment, psychological pressure and threats, deprivation of any benefits. Don’t force yourself, it won’t do much good, it’s better to look for new, more effective ways of motivation.
4. Use positive incentives more, for example, praise, care, recognition of merit, moral methods of motivation, etc. Give yourself a day of rest, a trip to the cinema or something pleasant.
5. Reduce the number and level of negative reactions to failure. Other owls, if you haven’t learned something, treat yourself with mercy and care. “Yes, this is bad, I’ll try again!”
6. Learn to switch. Have a couple more interesting activities in stock that can temporarily replace your main activity.
7. Learn to rest properly, switch more actively from work to rest. Rest is the most important component of life, without it you cannot be effective at work.
8. Remember that not only the goal itself should bring pleasure, but also the path to it, the activities aimed at achieving it.

Thus, if you know what the Yerkes-Dodson law is, then you can properly organize the management of motivation, both your own and the motivation of other people.

The Yerkes-Dodson Law explains why, by striving hard to achieve, we can significantly increase the risk of failure? How can high interest in achieving the desired result play a cruel joke and become, according to the Yerkes-Dodson law, the reason that the case will be abandoned halfway? It turns out that excessive persistence and interest in the result are not always good. But why does this happen?

What is the meaning of the law?

The Yerkes-Dodson Law states that an average level is sufficient to achieve results. The relationship between a person’s interest and the effectiveness of his activities is not always directly proportional.

Discovery of the Yerkes-Dodson law

At the beginning of the last century, British psychologists Dodson and Yerkes studied the peculiarities of the movement of rats through a maze when exposed to electric shocks. At first, as its strength increased, the animals began to run across it faster. But another increase in the strength of the impulses led to an unexpected result - the time to complete the maze did not decrease, but increased.

These data have attracted particular attention from scientists. After a detailed study of the situation, it turned out that the cause of what was happening was excess. It resulted in panic behavior in rats and their chaotic movement through the maze. Therefore, the time to exit it has increased significantly.

More details about the provisions of the law

The famous ancient Roman philosopher Cicero wrote: “Passion is an excessively strong movement of the soul.” And this quote is not about love relationships at all. It refers to an excess of emotion in any activity and perfectly captures the essence of the Yerkes-Dodson Law of Motivation. It is described in more detail by the following two provisions:

• The dependence of the effectiveness of actions on the level of motivation looks like a curve in the shape of an inverted letter U. According to it, with increasing motivation, the quality of activity increases only at the beginning. After reaching optimal motivation, it begins to rapidly decline.
• According to the Yerkes-Dodson law of optimum motivation, there is an inverse relationship between the level of sufficient motivation and the degree of difficulty of the task. To successfully achieve a difficult goal, its level must be lower than for a less difficult goal.

Examples of the Yerkes-Dodson Law

Vivid examples of its manifestation include the following situations:

• Failures of responsible excellent students in important entrance exams.
• Failures in losing weight among people who take the matter seriously.
• Refusals to hire people who have been thoroughly preparing for an interview for a long time.

The examples given reflect paradoxical situations in the understanding of many of us. After all, in them, result-oriented people fail due to excessive motivation. The Yerkes-Dodson Law opens up performance in a new way by emphasizing a moderate attitude. How is this possible?

The Yerkes-Dodson law of optimal motivation helps determine a sufficient level of interest that will not interfere with achieving the desired result. But why and at what point can aspiration suddenly become a fatal obstacle?

The fact is that increasing motivation can cause unwanted emotional states. First, it stimulates an increase in tension in the subcortex of the brain. Excessively strong impulses begin to attack the cortex and provoke its diffuse excitation. As a result, feelings of anxiety, fear or restlessness arise, which can destroy and turn into dust any.

According to the Yerkes-Dodson law, the optimal level of anxiety also plays an important role, not just motivation. It should allow a person to make informed decisions and not become a cause of panic and.

What criteria are used to determine optimal motivation?

Using the Yerkes-Dodson Law in Practice

The Yerkes-Dodson law of optimum allows you to plan the competent achievement of a goal, determining a sufficient, but at the same time safe level of motivation.

In workflows

Understanding optimal motivation helps managers improve the performance of their employees. Given this, they will not use wage manipulation to improve results. After all, the competition that arises because of this can cause psychological discord in the state of subordinates and deterioration in work results. Also, people in any position can intelligently approach motivation and performance based on the Yerkes-Dodson law.

In self-development

When striving for personal growth, we should not be overly persistent and burden ourselves. Remember, any changes require patience. In order not to give up prematurely, you should take care of keeping your motivation at a sufficient level.

In sports

Using this phenomenon, you can intelligently control the mood in. This will help prevent premature breakdowns and... After all, sport requires the ability to calculate strength, and not waste it at the very beginning of the race. Experienced trainers are familiar with the concept of optimal motivation. They always help their clients maintain it for the required period.

Conclusion

The Yerkes-Dodson Law characterizes the relationship between the desire for the intended result and the actual results from an unusual point of view for many. It makes you think about the popular belief that it is important to constantly increase motivation.

The Yerkes-Dodson law is an empirical generalization, originally established by psychologists Yerkes and Dodson (1908) in experiments on mice, regarding the influence of motivational strength (level of arousal) on performance under varying task difficulties (e.g. brightness discrimination). In generalized form, the law can be formulated in the form of 2 provisions:
1) the dependence of activity efficiency on the level of motivation is characterized by a curvilinear function (in the form of an inverted U-shaped curve); In other words, there is a certain optimum of motivation for doing something. activities;
2) the level of optimal motivation is inversely related to the level of difficulty of the task, i.e., the more difficult the task is for the subject, the lower the level of optimal motivation.

Example. The level of motivation, which can be conditionally estimated at seven points, will be the most favorable. A subsequent increase in motivation (up to 10 or more) will lead not to an improvement, but to a deterioration in performance. Thus, a very high level of motivation is not always the best. According to the Yerkes-Dodson law, to achieve success, an optimal (or, more simply put, moderate, average) level of motivation is required; an excess here is just as bad as a deficiency.

Animal experiment

Robert Yerkes and John Dodson first conducted experiments on mice and chimpanzees. In animals, they developed differentiation to distinguish the dark entrance to the maze from the light one. The correct choice of entrance to the maze allowed the mouse to reach the nest, where positive reinforcement awaited it - a mouse of the opposite sex. In case of mistakes, punishment was applied - electric shock through the wire floor. The severity of the punishment varied. Different series produced differentiations of varying degrees of complexity. A weak current is the optimal punishment for developing difficult differentiation. When mild differentiation is formed, the optimal level of punishment is higher.

Human experiment

Human studies have demonstrated similar results. The experimental material was puzzles, and the motivating stimulus was a monetary reward (the amount of the reward for the correct solution, initially insignificant, gradually increased to a very significant one). And this is what was discovered.

People worked half-heartedly for a purely symbolic gain, and the results were poor. As the reward increased, so did the enthusiasm; the results improved accordingly. However, at a certain point, when the possibility of winning reached a considerable value, enthusiasm grew into excitement, and performance results decreased. Thus, it turned out that weak motivation is not sufficient for success, but excessive motivation is also harmful, since it generates unnecessary excitement and fussiness.