Final answer:
Motivation is defined as the intensity and direction of one's effort, guided by wants or needs that drive behaviors towards goals, influenced by intrinsic and extrinsic factors.
Step-by-step explanation:
In a general sense, motivation can be defined as the intensity and direction of one's effort. Motivation encapsulates the wants or needs that steer our behavior towards achieving specific goals. It can emerge from intrinsic factors, which are internal like personal satisfaction, or extrinsic factors, which originate externally such as rewards or recognition from others.
Varieties of theories exist that attempt to explain the various aspects of motivation. For example, self-efficacy, a concept highlighted by Albert Bandura, suggests that our belief in our own abilities to complete tasks can greatly influence motivation.
Then there's Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs that layers motivational drivers from basic physiological needs to complex forms such as self-actualization. Therefore, motivation is multi-faceted, comprising both the intensity at which we pursue goals and the direction in which our efforts are channeled.