How do we motivate ourselves when studying for an exam or
working to a tight deadline? The more unpleasant the task, the more willpower
we need to rise to the challenge. Unfortunately, our reserves of willpower are
This means that other mechanisms are required to motivate
people to continually perform at a high level. And now scientists have shown
that internal, unconscious motivation can significantly improve performance
In an ideal world, employees would totally identify with
their company’s business objectives, be experts in their field and extremely
motivated about their work. But in reality, this is not always the case and
this places the spotlight on motivational skills for anyone in a leadership
"There are three components to motivation. The first is
our conscious objectives and desires for example, the aspiration for a highly
paid role in a company in order to achieve a certain standard of living. We are
also driven by unconscious, implicit motives. These are deeply rooted in our
emotions and can include the desire to do things well, have an impact on and
control over others, and engage in interpersonal relationships," explains
Prof Hugo Kehr from the Chair of Psychology at Technische Universität München
(TUM). "The third motivational component builds on the skills and
capabilities that we bring to a role."
When all three components dovetail, we are highly motivated,
focused and happy in our work. But if one component is missing, willpower can
help bridge the gap. However, sheer willpower or self-control won't keep us
going for long. Together with TUM sports psychologist, Dr Peter Gröpel, Prof.
Kehr investigated how our unconscious motivation can influence our willpower.
Willpower to the test
To research the effect of the unconscious motives, the
researchers gave their subjects a task that required them to overcome a certain
challenge. They then looked at how much willpower they had left for a second
challenge. The hypothesis was based on the assumption that the stronger the
level of unconscious motivation, the longer the self-control would prevail.
In the first part of the study, subjects were shown a key
scene from the movie Dead Poets Society, in which an overbearing father
emphatically forbids his son from being an actor. One group of participants was
asked to re-enact the scene, taking on the role of the father. The control group
simply had to write down the dialogue.
In the second part of the experiment, the experimenter
showed the participants one of the funniest scenes from the animated film Ice
Age and asked them not to smile or laugh. "Subjects had to use their
willpower in both situations: In the first part, to play an unpleasant
character in front of a video camera, and in the second, to suppress the desire
to laugh," says Gröpel.
Using standard tests, the psychologists had already assessed
the strength of the participants’ drive for power (their inner motivation to
influence and control others). The idea was that strong power motivation might
assist them in the task of playing the domineering father.
Indeed, they discovered that participants with a stronger
power motive found it easier not to laugh during the Ice Age scene. Prof Kehr
explains: "We can conclude from this that they were able to draw on their
internal motivation while completing the first task and so they had more
willpower left for the second task." This difference was not observed in
the control group, who only had to retell the story of the conflict.
In a similar experiment, the researchers looked at another
motive: the motivation to do things well and achieve some standard of
excellence. "Again, it was clear that those with a strong achievement
motivation did not drain their willpower resources and so performed better
overall," says Dr Gröpel.
Setting these findings within an occupational context, the
researchers recommend increasing internal motivation through targeted
incentives. Employees would thus need less energy to master challenges and
reveal higher levels of motivation with subsequent tasks or challenges. Prof
Kehr gives some examples: "An individual who is motivated by power could
be endowed with a team-leading position in the company. And an employee who is
motivated by achievement can be best encouraged through creative projects with
little bureaucratic red tape.”