Chapter 3 Foundations of Survivability in Autonomous Systems 55
3.6 Motivation as a means of achieving survivability
Motivation, in psychology, refers to the initiation, direction, intensity and persistence of behaviour (Geen, 1995). The discussion on motivation is consequent of the under- standing that behaviour in an autonomous system is motivated. Motivation is central to understanding how an organism is capable of autonomous functioning, namely how decisions are made on what is important for its survival and determining the means to achieving the necessary goals for continued existence (Savage, 2003).
This section seeks to identify the extent and manner in which the autonomous behaviours of a system are based on its degree of motivation, drawing parallels between the innate motivation and drives in biological systems, and the operating conditions and requirements to which an artificial system is subjected to. In particular, human motivation is studied, by drawing upon theories such as Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, 1943) to show the relationship between motivation and needs, with suggestions on their applicability to the decision making process of artificial systems.
3.6.1 Motivation in biological systems
An innate need for biological systems is to survive; these incorporate reactive mech- anisms such as the homeostatic regulation of body temperature when confronted with extreme temperatures (e.g. sweating, shivering), routine mechanisms such as conditioned behaviours in the search for food or concealment from danger (Damásio, 1994), and reflective mechanisms that generate meaning and understanding of the environment and the self (Ortony et al., 2005). Often a less precise but speedy response is more conducive for survival than a precise but slower reaction (Dean, 1998), especially when innate or instinctive fight or flight responses are being made. Many activities performed by biological systems involve those that ensure their survival, as shown in Figure 3.1. These activities are motivated by the needs of the biological system, e.g.
awareness, sustenance, safety, accomplishment, reproduction, belongingness and safety.
The behaviours of biological systems are directed at fulfilling these needs.
Biological Systems
Homeostatic regulation of body temperature, circulation, etc.
Reproductive drive to ensure survival of the species; Evolution
Routine / conditioned behaviours for search of food, concealment of danger
Innate / instinctive mechanisms for fight / flight responses
Herding, flocking behaviours for protection against predators
Biological Systems Biological Systems
Homeostatic regulation of body temperature, circulation, etc.
Homeostatic regulation of body temperature, circulation, etc.
Reproductive drive to ensure survival of the species; Evolution Reproductive drive to ensure survival of the species; Evolution
Routine / conditioned behaviours for search of food, concealment of danger
Routine / conditioned behaviours for search of food, concealment of danger
Innate / instinctive mechanisms for fight / flight responses Innate / instinctive mechanisms for fight / flight responses
Herding, flocking behaviours for protection against predators
Herding, flocking behaviours for protection against predators
Awareness Sustenance
Accomplishment
Reproduction Belongingness
Safety
Safety
Figure 3.1: Many activities performed by biological systems involve those that safeguard their survival. These activities are driven by theneedsof the biological systems.
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Awareness
Accomplishment
Reproduction Belongingness
Safety
Safety
Artificial Systems
Sustenance
Figure 3.2: A biological systems’ analogy for processes necessary to ensure the survival of autonomous systems. This is achieved by modelling the operational requirements of autonomous systems as needs and designing behaviours to fulfil these needs. Hence the notion of survival in biological systems is being mapped into the autonomous systems’
perspective.
From the above biological systems analogy, achieving autonomous operation in artificial systems lies in fulfilling certain operational requirements. These are analogous to the survivability needs of biological systems, as indicated in Figure 3.2. The outstanding question is the design of behaviours or actions to fulfil these needs in an artificial system.
3.6.2 Human motivation and needs theories
The study of human behaviour has led to the development of several theories for motivation, most notably Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory (Maslow, 1943), which is established in many domains including psychology, human resource management, organizational management and human factors engineering. According to this theory, human behaviour is motivated by a set of needs that are organized in a hierarchical manner (Heylighen, 1992; Maslow, 1954; Michaud, 2002). The intensity of each need in driving behaviour is dependent on its relative position in the hierarchy. A need which is satisfied is no longer active, and the greater the extent of satisfaction, the lesser the activity involved in the continued satisfaction of this need (Heylighen, 1992).
The current interpretation of this theory distinguishesneedsintodeficiencyandgrowth needs.Deficiency needsrefer to those a human being must meet to sustain his existence, i.e. needs directly related to his survivability. In comparison, Growth needs refer to those which a human being would strive to fulfil only when his deficiency needs have been satisfied. Table 3.1 summarizes the list ofneedswithin Maslow’s hierarchy. Needs (a)–(d) aredeficiency needs, whereas (e)–(h) aregrowth needs.
Though remarkable when conceived, Maslow’s model has been criticized on the grounds that it does not account for the case where more than one level ofneeds are active at any time. This has been addressed partly in 1969 by Clayton Alderfer, who reclassified the needs identified by Maslow into three categories, namely Existence, Relatednessand Growth, otherwise known as the ERG Theory. Existencerefers to the need for basic material and existential requirements. Relatedness describes the need for maintaining relationships, both inter-personal and with the events occurring in the world. Growth, as the highest-order need, refers to the intrinsic desire for personal development, fulfilment and learning. The distinction is thatneedswithin each category are simultaneously being met. However, there is no understanding concerning how conflicting needs are resolved, as is the case when an autonomous system is expected to deliberate between conflicting goals. It is apparent that some mitigatory mechanism (e.g. an arbitrator of behaviour) is necessary. In the study of mind and consciousness, this is the volitive aspect of conation (Huitt, 1999), i.e. the element of conscious choice, and likened to the fundamental hurdle that systems need to cross in order to be deemed truly autonomous.
Table 3.1: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (extended) (Maslow, 1954, 1967).
Need Description
a. Physiological The need to maintain homeostasis; physiological requirements for survival, e.g. air, food, water, sleep.
b. Safety The need for shelter, warmth and security.
c. Social The need for companionship and acceptance.
d. Esteem The need for feeling of competency and recognition.
e. Cognitive The need for understanding and reasoning; curiosity.
f. Aesthetic The desire for beauty, symmetry and order.
g. Self-actualization The desire to find self-fulfilment and realize one’s potential.
h. Self-transcendence The desire to connect to something beyond the ego or to help others realize their self-actualizationneeds.