Motivation: An Evaluation of Barrack Obama

Barack Obama, the 44^th President of the United States of America as well as the nation's first African-American president, is an inspiration to many people. Looking at his decision to run for the presidential office in 2007, many people are curious about what motivates Barack Obama. Many people would have simply been too overwhelmed or even disheartened to run for the most responsible and prestigious job in the world, especially under similar circumstances that Obama underwent. Understanding theories of motivation can help one to understand why people choose to do the things that they do.

First, some insight on Barack Obama's personality will help many to understand a little about him. Obama is a very charismatic speaker. He tends to speak on a level that helps many to understand him. He is a well-known writer. Obama spent time as a civil rights attorney and as a Constitutional law professor (White, n.d.). He served seven years as an Illinois state senator. However, all of this success would have seemed out of reach to some. He was born from a White mother and a Black father at a time when interracial unions were frowned upon heavily. His mother and her parents raised him because his father left the family when Obama was only two years old (White, n.d.). He briefly lived in Indonesia with his mother before moving in with his grandparents when he was 10 years old. They lived in Hawaii at the time. It would probably not be unfair to say that his first 10 years of life were not typical of other children of that time. Obama has strong family values and is close to his own wife and two daughters.

With this in mind, one must look at certain theories of motivation. First, the psychoanalytic view, or Freud's theory of motivation, can be used. According to the Axia College Week Five reading Chapter 7 (2009), "The theory can be boiled down to four basic propositions. I call them the principles of (a)determinism, (b) drive, (c) conflict, and (d) the unconscious" (p. 250). Obama's fate may have already been chosen by an unseen force. He may have had an instinct to succeed and fought hard to climb to the top of the career ladder because society deemed this to be the way to succeed. His actual instinct may have been something different, but as an outlet for this instinct, the closest thing to satisfy the instinct in today's world may have been success in his career. Also, aggression may have had a role. Unable to vent his aggression in a way that society deems appropriate, Obama may have fueled his drive to succeed with it. Conflicts within himself may have started when he felt that he could not have other things that others had, being African American in a time of racial inequalities. This may have led to Obama's motivation as well. His unconscious may have led him to be anxious and to let out his anxiety by striving for success.

Another theory of motivation is the humanistic view. According to the Axia College Week Five reading Chapter 7 (2009), "From the humanistic perspective, the supreme motivator is the strivingto actualize and perfect the self" (p. 266). Obama wanted to make himself the best that he could be, breaking racial barriers along the way. He wanted to show his full potential. He did this by growing as a person, putting to use what he was best at and learned how to be good at other things as well. He wants to be liked and accepted by others. Obama shows this by being a public servant and helping others. Likely his motivation started by his needs. He obviously needed to start working for basic necessities. Then this grew into belonging, esteem needs, and finally the self-actualization needs. These steps can be put into a hierarchy, or Maslow's Need Hierarchy (Axia College Week Five reading Chapter 7, 2009).

In addition, the diversity view is another theory of motivation. According to the Axia College Week Five reading Chapter 7 (2009), this theory "...argues that human beings are motivated by many different things" (p. 275). Perhaps Obama was motivated because of his race; he wanted to prove his worth to others. Or maybe it was because he was encouraged by those around him. Maybe he was motivated for the wealth. Maybe it was a mixture of things. The point is that many things can influence a person to do the things that they do. According to the Axia College Week Five reading Chapter 7 (2009), "The most well-known representative of the diversity tradition in the study of human motivation is Henry Murray's theory of needs" (p. 275). Murray believed that people live according to now, people's past experiences, and what may happen in the future. A person is motivated by basic needs. Obama was motivated to run for the presidency because he needed to feel accepted by others. Press are situations for need expression in the environment (Axia College Week Five reading Chapter 7, 2009). Obama found himself a likely candidate for the presidency when others encouraged him to do so, further fulfilling his need for acceptance. This happened repeatedly and a thema emerged, or he found that his need was fulfilled when others encouraged him. When Obama needed to feel accepted, people encouraged him to run for the presidency, allowing him to feel accepted. This is otherwise seen as tension-reduction. Wanting to achieve is one of Obama's psychogenic needs.

In conclusion, many theories of motivation can be applied when one tries to see the reasoning behind Barack Obama's decision to run for the presidency of the United States. Without some motivation, Barack Obama may not have become anyone of importance at all. The psychoanalytic view, humanistic view, and diversity view may all have contributed to Obama's desire to become the 44^th President of the United States.

Axia College of University of Phoenix. Chapter 7. Theories of Personality Web site.

D. White. "Profile of President Barrack Obama". U.S. Liberals.