(n)the psychological feature that arouses an organism to action toward a desired goal; the reason for the action; that which gives purpose and direction to behavior, Syn.motive, need
v. t. [ imp. & p. p. -vated p. pr. & vb. n. -vating ] [ From Motive, n. ] To provide with a motive; to move; impel; induce; incite. -- Mo`ti*va"tion n. William James. Syn. -- move, prompt, incite, induce impel, drive. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
2. The mental process that arouses an organism to action; as, a large part of a teacher's job is to give students the motivation to learn on their own. Syn. -- motive, need. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]
3. The goal or mental image of a goal that creates a motivation{ 2 }; as, the image of a peaceful world is a powerful motivation for only a rare few individuals. [ PJC ]