The
Opponent-Process Theory of Motivation
(Solomon and Corbit, 1974)
The concepts of habituation and
sensitization have been extended to emotions and motivated behavior.
Common characteristics of
emotional reactions
1. Emotional reactions are biphasic; a
primary reaction is followed by an opposite after-reaction
2. The primary reaction becomes weaker
with repeated stimulations
3. The after-reaction is strengthened
The Opponent-Process Theory is a homeostatic
theory
The theory assumes that
neurophysiological mechanisms involved in emotional behavior serve to maintain
emotional stability.
Richard Solomon’s OPPONENT
PROCESS THEORY
New
stimulus events, esp. those arousing strong emotions, disrupt a person’s equilibrium.
This
disruption triggers an opposite (opponent) response (process)
that eventually restores equilibrium.
If
the event occurs repeatedly, the opponent process becomes stronger and
eventually suppresses the initial reaction to the stimulus, creating
habituation.
e.g., development of drug tolerance and
addiction
e.g., engagement in high risk/arousal
activities such as skydiving
e.g., accidental drug overdoses
NOTE: Opponent process explanations based on
habituation and sensitization cannot explain many of the behaviors and mental processes that are the focus of
psychology.
Learned associations between certain
environmental stimuli and certain opponent responses affect our thoughts and
behaviors as well.
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING is one type of
associative learning that builds associations between various stimuli as well
as between stimuli and responses
Richard Solomon developed a motivational
theory based on opponent processes. Basically he states that every process that
has an affective balance, (i.e. is pleasant or unpleasant), is followed by a
secondary, "opponent process". This opponent process sets in after
the primary process is quieted. With repeated exposure, the primary process
becomes weaker while the opponent process is strengthened.
The most important contribution is
Solomon's findings on work motivation and addictive behavior, though it does
not fit the "economist's standard model", and how there are growing
suspicions that addiction is a much broader phenomenon than first believed. According
to opponent-process theory, drug addiction is the result of an emotional
pairing of pleasure and the emotional symptoms associated with withdrawal. At
the beginning of drug or any substance use, there are high levels of pleasure
and low levels of withdrawal. Over time, however, as the levels of pleasure
from using the drug decrease, the levels of withdrawal symptoms increase, thus
providing motivation to keep using the drug despite a lack of pleasure from it.
Opponent-Process
Theory:
Opponent-process
theory is a psychological and neurological model that accounts for a wide range
of behaviors, including color vision. This model was first proposed in 1878 by
Ewald Hering, a German physiologist, and later expanded by Richard Solomon, a 20th-century
psychologist.
The opponent-process theory was first
developed by Ewald Hering. He noted that there are color combinations that we
never see, such as reddish-green or yellowish-blue. Opponent-process theory
suggests that color perception is controlled by the activity of three opponent
systems. In the theory, he postulated about three independent receptor types
which all have opposing pairs: white and black, blue and yellow, and red and
green.
These three pairs produce combinations
of colors for us through the opponent process. Furthermore, according to this
theory, for each of these three pairs, three types of chemicals in the retina
occur, in which two types of chemical reactions exist. These reactions would
yield one member of the pair in their building up phase, or anabolic process,
whereas they would yield the other member while in a destructive phase, or a
catabolic process.
The colors in each pair oppose each
other. Red-green receptors cannot send messages about both colors at the same
time. This theory also explains negative afterimages; once a stimulus of a
certain color is presented, the opponent color is perceived after the stimulus
is removed because the anabolic and catabolic processes are reversed. For
example, red creates a positive (or excitatory) response while green creates a
negative (or inhibitory) response. These responses are controlled by opponent
neurons, which are neurons that have an excitatory response to some wavelengths
and an inhibitory response to wavelengths in the opponent part of the spectrum.
According to this theory, color
blindness is due to the lack of a particular chemical in the eye. The positive
after-image occurs after we stare at a brightly illuminated image on a
regularly lighted surface and the image varies with increases and decreases in
the light intensity of the background.
