Prosocial motivation is the last kind of motivation and is usually left out when people discuss the types of motivation.
Professor Adam Grant, bestselling author of Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success[x], describes this type of motivation as “a desire to benefit other people and groups”[xi]. Neither extrinsic nor intrinsic motivation fully encompasses the idea of doing something out of a desire to help others, so prosocial motivation is a third kind of motivation.
Out of all the types of motivation, prosocial motivation is usually the strongest. Can you imagine somebody sacrificing herself to look good in the eyes of others or because she wants to express herself? How about a mother sacrificing her life for her children?
Prosocial motivation can take the form of:
- helping someone improve her circumstances (a husband taking care of his health so he can keep up with his active wife and participate in her favorite sports);
- helping someone avoid pain or suffering (a grandfather exercising to reduce the risk of a stroke so his grandchildren won’t suffer because of his early death);
- doing something to support a certain cause (running a marathon to collect money to support a hospice).
While it’s not necessary to have prosocial motivation to introduce a habit of regular exercise, prosocial motivation alone can be sufficient to stick to your habits forever.
A lifelong smoker can stop smoking overnight – without any other motivators – when his daughter tells him she wants him to be around – and not six feet deep – to walk her down the aisle.
Though it’s for other people, please note this type of motivation is not about pressure – it’s about your genuine desire to help somebody and not to avoid the pain of peer pressure. A husband trying to stop smoking because his wife nags at him every single day isn’t benefiting from prosocial motivation. A husband who wants to stop smoking because he loves his wife and wants to be around her for a long time is.
When trying to introduce more physical activity in your life, consider who else could benefit from this change in your life. Keep this person in mind when tempted to give up or give in to laziness. It’s a powerful motivator when you care about someone or something (a certain cause) to such an extent that it’s more important in your eyes than you.