The Relationship Between Multidimensional Motivation and Endocrine-Related Responses: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Multidimensional motivational theories postulate that the type of motivation is as important as the quantity of motivation, with implications for human functioning and well-being. An extensive amount of research has explored how constructs contained within these theories relate to the activation of the endocrine system. However, research is fragmented across several theories, and determining the current state of the science is complicated. In line with contemporary trends for theoretical integration, this systematic review aims to evaluate the association between multidimensional motivational constructs and endocrine-related responses to determine which theories are commonly used and what inferences can be made. Forty-one studies were identified incorporating five distinct motivation theories and multiple endocrine-related responses. There was evidence across several theories that high-quality motivation attenuated the cortisol response in evaluative environments. There was also evidence that motivational needs for power and affiliation were associated with lower and higher levels of salivary immunoglobulin A, respectively. The need for power may play a role in increasing testosterone when winning a contest; however, this evidence was not conclusive. Overall, this review can shape the future integration of motivational theories by characterizing the nature of physiological responses to motivational processes and examining the implications for well-being.

The effect of autonomous and controlled motivation on self‐control performance and the acute cortisol response

“…The results of this study support a growing body of literature documenting the psychophysiological benefits of higher quality motivation (see: Steel et al., 2021 ). Participants exposed to a condition emphasizing autonomous regulation experienced an attenuated cortisol response in contrast to those in a controlled regulation condition who experienced an increase in cortisol.…”

“…When participants were obliged to choose an ostensibly less favorable self-control task, they subsequently displayed an increase in cortisol. This extends a growing body of work demonstrating that higher quality motivation is adaptive in reducing the cortisol response in evaluative situations (Steel et al, 2021). In this study, a single "dose" of motivational manipulation was used, and the experiment was identical between conditions in all other aspects.…”

“…The effect size ( f ) was calculated from a similar study manipulating autonomous and controlled motivation as the independent variable and measuring cortisol as the repeated measures outcome ( η 2 = .33; Reeve & Tseng, 2011 ). Further justifying the use of a large effect size, a recent systematic review revealed the manipulation of high and low quality motivation with the intention of detecting repeated‐measures differences in cortisol consistently detected large effect sizes (Steel et al., 2021 ). Data were subsequently collected from 41 participants; however, two participants were removed from the analysis.…”

The Influence of Product Quality on Positive Word-of-mouth Communication, Case Study at Kedai Wak Edoy Malang

“…So that when a product has a positive value, it will have a very large opportunity to be recommended by consumers to other consumers and vice versa when a product is thrown into the market is considered to have a negative value, it will get negative publicity by consumers. According to Steel et al, (2021) the most effective promotion is through word-ofmouth. Satisfied customers will speak for your product more effectively and convincingly than any other type of advertising.…”

The Effect of Affiliated Motivation, Work Environment, Competency, and Affective Commitment on Performance of Transportation Service Officers, Labuhanbatu District

“…Affiliated motivation is the motivation given to employees who tend to harm other employees (Runge et al, 2020). Steel et al, (2021) define affiliation motivation as the desire to build and maintain positive bonds between organizational members and a sense of belonging through individual relationships and social connectedness, affiliation motivation is considered fundamental for all members of the organization. Affiliate-motivated employees often have a desire to build and maintain positive relationships with their co-workers.…”