A surfer is about to attempt to ride the biggest wave she has ever seen. Her heart is pounding with fear, and she is not sure if she can make it without wiping out, but she attempts to ride the wave anyway. Explain this behavior in terms of the following theories of motivation and emotion. a. Achievement motive
b. Arousal theory
c. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
d. Cannon-Bard thalamic theory
e. Opponent-process theory

The surfer wants to attempt to ride the biggest wave, but she is scared and she is not sure if she can make it out successfully but she decides to ride the wave anyway. Her behavior can be explained through the theories of motivation and emotion below:

a. Achievement motive

This is the impulse in humans to face challenges, overcome and master it in order to reach the pinnacle of excellence.

The surfer has this impulse and is seeking to overcome the wave and master it.

b. Arousal theory

This theory of motivation explains that people will undertake certain actions to sustain a high level of physiological arousal.

The surfer has a high level of arousal which motivates her to seek out the dangerous but stimulating activity of riding the biggest wave she has ever seen.

c. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a theory that is based on motivation and which has five tiers containing the model of human needs.

The hierarchy contains the needs from the least to the greatest and they include:

a. Physiological needs

b. Safety needs

c. Love and belonging.

d. Esteem

e. Self-actualization.

The surfer is at the highest level of human need which is self-actualization and that is why she is ready to take on the dangerous wave.

d. Cannon-Bard thalamic theory

This theory is based on emotion and it states that we feel different emotions and physiological reactions in bodies simultaneously.

The surfer is feeling the different emotions in her body such as fear, doubt, and her decision to undertake the dangerous mission.

e. Opponent-process theory

This theory states that every process has either an unpleasant or pleasant balance and is followed by a secondary process that sets in after the primary process is silenced. As exposure increases, the primary process becomes weaker and the opponent-process becomes stronger.

The surfer is showing a higher level of fear because it is her first time and would likely experience less pleasure when she completes the task but the more she performs the task, the pleasure increases, and the fear reduces.

the answer is a. monarch