• Question: what makes people tick?

    Asked by knivesandpens to Mark, Helen on 13 Jun 2011.
    • Photo: Mark Burnley

      Mark Burnley answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      Definitely a question for Helen! Perhaps a good place to start thinking about this is to think of something that doesn’t interest you at all and try and think why people are interested in that. For example, when I read a newspaper I’m really not interested in gardening, but loads of people devote their lives to it. I don’t want to steal Helen’s thunder, but there is mounting evidence that what makes people “tick” is related to activities that activate the reward centres of the brain, making you feel good. I think I speak for all of us scientists when I say that answering these questions activates our reward centres, although I must point out I have no evidence to support that!

    • Photo: Helen O'Connor

      Helen O'Connor answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      Hi and sorry our webchat crashed earlier. What makes people tick is what most fields of psychology are interested in: basically why do we think, feel, and behave in the way we do?

      When I ask athletes what makes them tick what I am interested in finding out is what *motivates* them because only when something really motivates us are we likely to do it, try hard at it, and hopefully succeed at it. Motivation is what drives us to achieve our goals.

      Some athletes are motivated by money or fame, these are called *extrinsic* motives, but most really successful athletes are also motivated by the personal challenge, being the best they can be, and by a simple enjoyment of their sport – these are called *intrinsic* motives. There is more and more evidence that says people who are intrinsically motivated to do something are more likely to succeed at it.

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