Touching the Void: Moitivational Theories

Touching the Void is an inspiring story about the power of the human will. To my surprise, the film left me emotionally spent as it touched on the issues of friendship, mortality and survival. I am sure many of my classmates will agree that it is an amazing story. But, for me, the thing that makes it truly inspirational is the way that Joe never gave up. In this brief paper I intend to show how Self Determination and Goal Setting theory influenced Joe’s inspiring story of survival.

Self Determination Theory Self-Determination Theory draws from the research that people are inherently active organisms that strive for positive interactions with the environment (Class Lecture, February 3rd 2011). The theory suggests that people have three psychological needs that must be satisfied to initiate and regulate everyday behaviour. In addition, the theory also specifies that satisfaction of these needs also enhances intrinsic motivation (Deci & Ryan, 1985b, as cited in Reeve 2008).

Intrinsic motivation is self-directed process which leads to more interest based behaviour rather than behaviour based on external rewards (Deci & Ryan, 1985b, as cited in Reeve 2008). The first psychological need is to feel a sense of autonomy in performing an activity. Autonomous behaviour involves having an internal locus of control and freedom to determine own behaviour. Autonomy is increased by having a choice, flexibility and opportunities for self direction (Reeve & Jang, 2006, as cited in Reeve 2008).

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The second need is having a sense of relatedness. This can be achieved by having close relationships with people who care about you (Baumeister & Leary, 1995, as cited in Reeve 2008). The third fundamental need is to perceive competence in relation to an activity. Competence is increased by engaging in activities that facilate optimal challenge and provides effective feedback (Deci & Ryan, 1985b, as cited in Reeve 2008). Self Determination theory provides us with a very applicable framework to understand Joe’s behaviour during his fight to stay alive.

As noted by Professor Nisbet in class, intrinsic motivation is generally inherent in people and, can flourish out of people’s need for autonomy, relatedness and competence. There are many benefits an individual can attain by embracing intrinsic motivation. One of these benefits is the importance of persistence on a challenging task (Deci & Ryan, 1985b, as cited in Reeve 2008). There are numerous occasions during the film which persistence on a task is evident. Immediately after Joe breaks his leg, it obvious the persistence level of both climbers begins to escalate.

Although both men know that a broken leg during a mountain ascent is likely fatal, they still persistent and work toward the goals of reaching the bottom. Joe is in excruciating pain but he continues on simply because there are no other options. There comes a point in the film where Joe is alone, and he continues to fight even though his hope of survival is slipping. Joe describes a constant “voice” in his head that urges him to “keep going”. I believe that Joe’s inner voice represents his continued persistence and determination to survive.

It is clear that Joe’s high level of persistence allowed him to push him forward when he felt like giving up. Goal Setting Theory Goal setting theory is based on the idea that specific, difficult goals lead to higher task performance than do easy goals (Locke & Latham, 1990; Mento, Steel & Karren, 1987; Tubbs, 1986, as cited in Reeve 2008). Before difficult and specific goals can raise performance, the concept of goal acceptance must take place within an individual. In general, the individual must decide either to accept or reject the goal.

If the goal is both accepted, it will enhance performance and facilitate goal commitment (Erez & Kanfer, 1983, as cited in Reeve 2008). In addition, Because goals refer to a future ideal state, setting goals may uncover discrepancy between a present and ideal state. This mismatch between present and ideal state will motivate an individual to achieve an ideal state and modify an ineffective plan if necessary. (Campion & Lord, 1982, as cited in Reeve 2008). Joe’s survival story is a testament to how to effective goal setting can be.

With no food, no water frostbitten fingers, and a shattered leg Joe comes to the conclusion that if he wants to survive he must “set definite targets” for himself. Faced with an enormous task, Joe consistently sets small specific, attainable goals to increase the chances of his survival. For example, Joe would challenge himself to crawl to a particular rock within twenty minutes. When he got there, he set himself another goal, and then another. This is how Joes managed to mentally deal with the seemingly impossible task of getting to the bottom of the mountain.

In summary, Touching the Void is an astonishing story of determination and persistence and it probably says more to me about goal-setting than anything else I have ever watched. By focusing on Joe’s 3 psychological needs and goal setting motives, we have learned much about the reasons why Joe never gave up. Although it may seem unrealistic to compare how Joe survived a life and death ordeal to our ordinary lives, extreme stories like this help us understand what drives motivational behaviours in everyday situations.

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