When Motives Conflict

Approach-approach conflict

• Occurs when you must choose between two desirable outcomes. On Friday night, should you go to the movies with your best friend or dinner with that really cute guy/girl from history class. Both options are good!

Avoidance-avoidance conflict

• Occurs when you must choose between two bad options. If your parents tell you to clean your room or rake leaves and you desire neither one you are experiencing an avoidance-avoidance conflict.

Approach-avoidance

• When there is one bad and one good feature. Let's say you love cotton candy but the sugar gives you gas. Cotton candy has both attractive (tastes gooood) and unattractive (farting) features.

Multiple approach-avoidance• Here you must choose between two

or more things, each of which has both desirable and undesirable features. A good example is choosing a college that you want to go to. Duke has better weather (attractive), but their football team is not the not the best (unattractive). Harvard has a great legacy (attractive) but crimson is such a horrid color (unattractive).