The past three decades of research on human motivation have presented theories of cognitive decision-making that fail to account for numerous behavioral paradoxes such as the disproportional rise in motivation following the reduction in anxiety. This text provides empirical evidence and a broad theoretical framework for integrating cognitive, emotional and motivational psychology though a systems-oriented perspective.

Researchers in achievement motivation are becoming all the more aware of the importance of affect in motivation and self-regulation. This leads to extension and integration of existing theories as well as to new theories that provide a good account of existing data and offer new insight into the mechanism underlying the functioning of motivation. This book presents up-to-date basic research in motivation and self-regulation and an overview of the field, with particular emphasis on issues such as change of motivation, effects of context and culture on motivation, relations of cognition and...

"It is not thought as such that can move anything, but thought which is for the sake of something and is practical." This discerning insight, which dates back more than 2000years to Aristotle, seems to have been ignored by most psycholo gists. For more than 40years theories of human action have assumed that cogni tion and action are merely two sides of the same coin. Approaches as different as S-O-R behaviorism, social learning theory, consistency theories, and expectancy value theories of motivation and decision making have one thing in common: they all assume that "thought (or any other...

Overview of current trends in the psychology of motivation and volition, covering basic research as well as developmen- tal and applied aspects. Intention and volition are consi- dered in chapters on behavior dynamics, self-regulation, and control over intention and actions.