Introduction. The article outlines the complexity of scientific cognition of motivation and the relevance of studying it from the position of an internal observer. The aim is to reveal the content and structure of mental representations of motivation in ordinary consciousness.

Materials and Methods. The main research methods are: analysis of scientific literature studying mental representations; diagnostic methods, including a reflexive description of the person’s values: the method of drawing, the associative experiment, the method of determining the concept; methods of statistical data processing. The research involved 360 respondents aged 18 to 22 years, studying in the humanities, science and applied specialties.

Results. Structure-level model of mental representations of students’ motivation is reconstructed; characteristic of the model main components at the figurative, associative and conceptual levels representation of motivation is presented.

Discussion. The study shows that the model of mental representations of motivation includes the essential, functional and structural classes of categories. The specificity of the organization and functioning of the “knowledge of motivation” is explained depending on the methods of information processing (non-verbal and verbal).

Conclusion. It is concluded that studying the phenomenon of motivation from the position of the internal observer makes it possible to navigate this psychic phenomenon more successfully and use knowledge to “manage motivation”.

• Basic categories representation of motivation in ordinary consciousness have been determined;
• A structure-level model of mental representations of the students’ motivation has been reconstructed;
• Features of the functioning of mental representations of motivation at the figurative, associative and conceptual levels have been presented.

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