Hunger is said to be the aspect of feeling the urge for food. Normally, when we feel hungry we simply go and find some food, eat it and that is that. However, there are more to just finding the food to fulfill the desires of the stomach. This entails the internal and external factors that are involved for one to feel hungry and the responses that occur in order to limit over eating. Similarly, there are some drive reduction theories that suggest that internal physiological needs create motivational states. They describe hunger as a result of deficit within the body. This is coupled with the positive incentive theory that suggests that people eat as a response to the anticipated pleasure of food (Coon, 2013). Well this might be true because the moment we come across good looking and delicious food we automatically feel hungry or rather grow a certain urge to eat it. In this case, what happens is that there are some external and internal stimuli that create motivation towards the food. The drive reduction theory brings about some form of deprivation that creates a psychological state where the drive for food leads to an unpleasant hunger. On the other hand the physiological state builds up the need for food (Coon, 2013).
The role of the primary drive of hunger and the effects it brings eating disorders are characterized through the behaviors which is aimed at reducing the physiological need. If the behaviors result in eating then the drive for hunger is reduced. Incidentally, this reduces the physiological state and brings about an unpleasant state. The drive of hunger may also bring about eating disorders. This is due to the fact that eating disorders permeates all aspects of each person’s life. The primary drive of hunger brings about the aspect of regulating food intake and people with eating disorders may use it to avoid taking food or at times over eat. Eating disorders are experienced by people who are not satisfied with their bodies where some have fears of getting fat or even low self-esteem. Therefore, they utilize the primary drive of hunger to omit or even avoid eating.
The effects of genders and cultural differences among eating disorders on emotions
Most gender and cultural difference disorders among eating disorders are brought about by the public image. Nowadays, men are most affected by eating disorders where they try to acquire muscles. This is a disorder known as muscle dysmorphia where they tend to lose body fats through excessive exercises. This brings about effects where they eat foods that they believe will help them gain the perfect bodies that are advertised on TVs. Women on the other hand are applying fitness techniques and exercises in order to acquire the ideal figures and shape that they see on some celebrities. These effects result to people changing their diets and engaging in sports that require low body fat or extreme weight loss. In turn, most people tend to gain some measure of control on what they eat or even the activities they participate. This may develop to eating disorders where they avoid eating even when they are hungry or even over eat at times.
Similarly, cultural differences have contributed to eating disorders where teenage girls described as perfect if at all they become helpful, considerate, conforming and obedient. This drives them to seek perfect control over their lives by being slim. On the other hand, women especially in the Western cultures view themselves as objects to be adored and evaluated by others. Therefore, they engage in maintaining their body shapes to the cultural ideal of slimness through dieting. In the African American culture women are perceived perfect or even associated with health and social status if they have huge bodies. Therefore, women who have not attained such figures will tend to over eat themselves in order to achieve such images which may lead to eating disorders.
Is intrinsic and extrinsic motivation involved and why?
Basically, the actions we are involved in are energized by a mixture of internal needs and external incentives. Through this point of view, we may find that the strong needs inside us may change an unpleasant incentive into a desired goal (Coon, 2013). The incentive values of goals may help explain motives that do not seem to emanate from internal needs. Internal deficiency may cause a need due to motivation of the activities (Coon, 2013). Therefore, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is involved due to the fact that the internal deficiency that arises causes needs which eventually lead to a drive. The drive from hunger leads to activation of a response that pushes us towards a goal. The actual process of reaching the goal satisfies the need which will be the end result (Coon, 2013).
References
Coon, D., & Mitterer, J. O. (2013).Introduction to psychology: Gateways to mind and behavior
(13th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning
Eating Disorders | Anorexia | Bulimia | Binge Eating Disorder | Compulsive Overeating | the Something Fishy Website on Eating Disorders. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.something-fishy.org/
Regulation of Food Intake. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.flyfishingdevon.co.uk/salmon/year3/psy337eating/PSY337foodintake.htm
