Individual and Social Aspect of the Inner Motivation Structure of Pupils in the Process ef Education

In the first part of the study the author defines the content of social and individual motivation in various activities of man. He evaluates the new social conditions, which especially under the influence of the scientific-technical revolution substantially modify and thus influence the formation of social consciousness in this respect. He points out that at present, in society as a whole, individual and, above all, material motives are growing at the expense of social ones. In the second part the author confronts the above-mentioned facts with the present- day state of pupils’ attitudes to various kinds of out-of-school work, as well as with the general opinions on attitudes to oneself and to society. This confrontation is based on a research carried out among 15-year old pupils. He comes to the conclusion that there is a conspicuous growth of various individual motives. Besides material motives a great part of the inner motivation structure of pupils is formed by motives of a non-material character, which he calls ≫auto-personal≪. The existing state in the field of social motives discloses considerable differences between conventional ideas officially recognized in the theory of ethical education and the actual attitudes and opinions of pupils in this field. The research results have further shown that the evaluation of out-of-school activities makes itself felt more strongly in this age-group, especially from the viewpoint of pupils’ own, individual motivation, whereas Judgment from the aspect of social motives is much less frequent. Personal aims and purposes of the pupils are bound up with the endeavour to realize their own Interests more closely than with the endeavour to get to know their social importance.