1. The political motives for imperialism in Southeast Asia were mostly all based on a nation's desire to gain power, compete with other European countries, expand territory, exercise military force, gain importance by winning colonies, and to lastly boost national pride and security.
2. Five Motives for Imperialism. Various motives prompt empires to seek to expand their rule over other countries or territories. These include economic, exploratory, ethnocentric, political, and religious motives.
3. American imperialism was motivated by four main factors: economic, political, geographic, and cultural. The economicfactors were desires to find new markets for trade. By extending colonial power throughout the world, the US would have new trading partners and markets.