MY PASSION QUEST

Professor Steven Reiss‘s book “Who Am I?: The 16 Basic Desires That Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities“.

 

AUTHOR:

Steven Reiss is a Ohio State University Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry. He has studied, amongst other things, anxiety sensitivity, and mental retardation. He has won several awards for his work, and has many published papers.In this book,

 

Finding Value-Based Happiness

Dr Reiss describes his theory of 16 Basic Intrinsic Motivations. This theory argues that, humans are motivated by intrinsic psychological drives, and that these drives are ends in themselves. Each drive is measured as a continuum for an individual, from weak to strong; it is the particularly strong and weak drives that best explain an individual’s motivations. The combinations of these 16 motivations describe the variability of human personality. These 16 motivations are irreducible: any other described drive or motivation can be expressed by the fundamental 16. These values are not short term “feel-good” happiness, but long term “value-based” happiness.

 

16 BASIC DESIRES (PASSIONS)

The 16 basic desires are:

Acceptance, the need for approval

Curiosity, the need to think

Eating, the need for food

Family, the need to raise children

Honor, the need to be loyal to the traditional values of one’s clan/ethnic group

Idealism, the need for social justice

Independence, the need for individuality

Order, the need for organized, stable, predictable environments

Physical Activity, the need for exercise

Power, the need for influence of will

Romance, the need for sexSaving, the need to collect

Social Contact, the need for friends (peer relationships)

Status, the need for social standing/importance

Tranquility, the need to be safe

Vengeance, the need to strike back

 

RESEARCH METHOD & VALIDATIONS

These motivations were selected by a Factor Analysis of a set of 328 enumerated goals / motivations surveyed over 400 people. Interestingly, this places things that to some seem independent, into the same category. For example: “Romance” includes the desire for aesthetic beauty as well as sensual pleasure; “Power” includes a drive for competence as well as power over others.The book describes each motivation in some detail, if not in predictable, monotonous fashion. It’s interesting to mediate on and understand these “overloaded” meanings of the fundamental desires.Later on, the book dives into four broad aspects of human society:couplesworkfamilysportsreligionThese aspects of human society can be built around many, if not all, of the 16 intrinsic desires. Also, particular social institutions attract similarly profiled people. For example, 65 ROTC Cadets scored very low for Tranquillity, and high for Power, Physical Activity and Vengeance. 45 Seminary Students tested high for Idealism, and low for Independence, Status, Family and Tranquillity.

 

TEST RESULTS:

You receive a two - five page, plain-language report that discusses how the individual prioritizes and combines the following 16 needs and what this means in terms of personality, behavior, happiness, and possible career choice.

The result are email directly to qualified coach or organizations who are administrating the test.  A discussion session with your coach/trainer is highly recommended.

 

APPLICABLE AREAS:

- Individual life coaching

- School student motivation test

- Marriage or pre-marriage counseling 

- Sport motivation

- Business / corporate consulting