A General Architecture for Modeling the Dynamics of Goal-Directed Motivation and Decision-Making

Abstract

We present a unified model of the spatial and temporal dynamics of motivation duringgoal pursuit. We use the model to integrate and compare six theoretical perspectivesthat make different predictions about how motivation changes as a personcomes closer to achieving a goal, as a deadline looms, and as a function ofwhether the goal is being approached or avoided. We fit the model to data fromthree experiments that examine how these factors combine to produce changes inmotivation over time. We show that motivation changes in a complex manner thatcannot be accounted for by any one previous theoretical perspective, but that iswell-characterized by our unified model. Our findings highlight the importance oftheoretical integration when attempting to understand the factors driving motivationand decision making in the context of goal pursuit.