In this guide, we explore how self-determination theory, the science of motivation, can empower activists and strengthen movements. We'll unpack the core principles and provide actionable steps to apply it in your activist practice, fostering engagement, wellbeing, and lasting impact.

Introduction

As change-makers, we often want other people to take certain actions. For example, we might want a politician to listen to us. Or we might want to motivate our friends to become actively involved with our campaign.

As individuals, we usually do not have enough power to bring about the change we want to see. So it is vital for us to understand how to motivate others to become involved with our campaigns too. The better we become at motivating others, the more people join our movements, the more likely we are to achieve our goals.

Why do people decide to become involved with activism? What determines what actions people are and are not willing to take? How can we increase people’s willingness to become actively involved with our campaigns? And how do we ensure people stay motivated over longer periods of time?

‘Self-determination theory’ provides us with well-researched answers to those questions! Alright, sounds complex.

So let’s have a sneak peak, so you know it this article is worth reading from beginning to end.

According to self-determination theory, there are three secret ingredients to motivation:

1. 🕊️ Autonomy (”I believe”): One way to motivate people is by providing external incentives for people to take action. For example, if we want people to sign up as volunteers, we can offer free stickers as a reward. However, as it turns out, people do not like feeling like they are being influenced by external factors to take action. External factors (”carrot and stick”) can actually reduce people’s motivation to act! People prefer having the feeling like they came to the decision to act by themselves. In other words: people do not like other people telling them what to do, nor being manipulated to something. Giving people autonomy increases the chance of them becoming actively involved with our campaigns.

• ❤️ Relatedness (”I belong”): At the same time, people are heavily influenced by the people around them. One of the primary ways for new people to become involved with activism is by them getting personally invited by a friend. And once you are in a group, the degree to which you feel like you belong to that group is one of the best predictors whether you will be willing to take action with that group. Building strong communities, while continuing to welcome new people and identities, is key to building highly motivated and healthy groups.
• Competence ("I succeed"): We all want to win.

As activists, we are always looking for more people to join our causes. After all, the more people that join our movements, the more likely we are to achieve our goals. So it is essential for us to understand how we can get others motivated to join our movements. And we must find ways to ensure people stay involved in the long run, and do not burn out.

Why do people decide to become involved with activism? What determines what actions people are and are not willing to take? And how can we increase people’s willingness to become involved with our campaigns? And how do we ensure people stay motivated over longer periods of time?

‘Self-determination theory’ provides us with well-researched answers to those questions.

As it turns

Summary