Hobfoll’s Conservation of Resources Theory describes motivation to what?

• A. Stress theory that describes the motivation that drives humans to both maintain their current resources and to pursue new resources
• B. Theory of cognitive development
• C. Theory of physical development
• D. Theory of social exchange

Answer: (A)

Conservation of Resources theory centers on how people are motivated to protect what they already have and to gain more resources. Resources can be things like money, safety, social support, skills, or energy. The driving idea is that stress arises when resources are threatened, lost, or when there’s a significant effort to acquire new resources. So the motivation is twofold: to conserve existing resources so they aren’t depleted, and to pursue additional resources to expand one’s reservoir for future resilience. This is exactly what the described option conveys—stress theory describing the motivation to maintain current resources and to pursue new ones. The other options point to different fields (cognitive development, physical development, social exchange) and don’t capture this resource-focused motivational posture.