FROM HOMELESS TO HARVARD

From Homeless to Harvard :

The Lizz Murray Story

Hafizatul Salma Harif Fathilah (101059)

Centre for Foundation Studies of International Islamic University Malaysia
HSM 2263 Basic Psychology, Section 817
Semester 3, 2011/2012
Miss Asmiza Shamshi
16 MARCH 2012

FROM HOMELESS TO HARVARD

Introduction
In previous class, we watched the story entitled From Homeless to Harvard that it is quite
related to one of the chapter in our textbook which is Motivation and Emotion. The story was
chosen as it is a good example of motivational story that tells the audience about the real
meaning of life along with how situation can lead us to survive. With the help of elaboration of
the scenes by the lecturer, it is much easier for us to understand connection between motivation
theory and examples showed in the movie. Hence, we were asked to summarize the story with
some theories. This task was being done individually with sincere opinions to show our point of
view to the topic related. The story was being summarized and had become the trigger for us to
write about what motivates us and how to achieve it in a real life. From the experiences gain
throughout the story did affecting my studies, to be excelled and nothing is impossible to
achieve, no matter who you are.

FROM HOMELESS TO HARVARD

Motivation Theory
The term motivation is defined as the process that initiates, guides and maintains goaloriented behaviors so that physical or psychological needs or wants are met. This is what causes
us to act, such reading a book to gain knowledge or working to earn money for survival. It
involves the biological, emotional, social and cognitive forces that activate behavior. Normally,
we used the term motivation to describe why a person does something.
Extrinsic and intrinsic motivations are both lay under the types of motivation which
related to the reward or satisfaction that one achieves. Some people are motivated to act or
behave in certain way because of the pleasurable external reward such getting a present or being
praise for every good grade on a report card, which refers to extrinsic motivation. Whereas,
intrinsic motivation is closely related to the reason behind the act itself which is rewarding or
satisfying in some internal manner?
Both may affect the result of work or behavior as concern in one of the research done by
Teresa Amabile about the creativity of children in doing artwork and the results are: Extrinsic
motivation decreased the degree of creativity shown in the experimental groups artwork when
compared to the creativity levels of the children in the intrinsically motivated control group.

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Approaches to Understanding Motivation

Drive-reduction approaches are aiming to gain support involved the concepts of needs
and drives. What is need? It is a requirement of some material such as food or water that is
essential for survival of the organism, in this case is human being. When we as a human have a
need, it then leads to psychological tension and physical arousal that motivates us to act in order
to fulfill the need and reduce the tension. This tension is called drive. A drive creates an
unpleasant state, a tension that needs to be reduced.
The theory is branch out into two kinds of drives, primary and acquired (secondary).
Primary drives are those who involve survival needs of the body such as hunger and thirst while
acquired (secondary) drives are those that are learned through experience or conditioning, such
as the need for money or social approval. Then, a theory of motivation was suggested about the
importance of three psychological needs such achievement, affiliation and power. This is also
known as the theory of needs.
The need for achievement (nAch) is a need that involves a strong desire to succeed in
attaining goals that are realistic and also challenging ones. Next, the need for affiliation (nAff)
that consider oneself who need to have a friendly social interactions and relationships with others
or in other word, seek to be popular and liked by others around them. The last need in this theory
is the need for power (nPow). People with this need want to have control or influence over others
and make an impact on them, as long as their ideas being used, regardless of whether or not
leading to success.

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The final approach had taken place by the study of Abraham Maslow. He was an
American psychologist known as one of the founders and principal exponents that proposed
about humanistic approaches. It manifests the series of ongoing hierarchy of needs in order to
achieve the highest level of personality fulfillment. There are 8 stages of needs shows in figure
below:

According to Maslow, a person started to fulfill their basic needs before proceeding to
other needs till they reach the self-actualization point. Whereby at this point, a person will fully
reached and satisfied his or her human potential. There are also peak experiences, when the times
come at least temporarily for a person to achieve self-actualization, because there will always be
up and down in our life.

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Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story

The dramatization is written by Ronni Kern, based on true story of a girl named Elizabeth
Murray or known as Lizz Murray that comes from a problematic family. Her mother was a drug
addict, alcoholic, legally blind and suffers from schizophrenic (mental disorder characterized by
a breakdown of thought processes and by poor emotional responsiveness). While, her father
seemed not to care about what happen at home, he just sat down on the couch and read books.
He was a genius; even he managed to answer all difficult questions on the quiz show correctly.
The story begin with the conflict between her sister, Lisa and her mother about money
that she kept because they need it to survive and buying food. She rarely goes to school, because
of her care towards her mother. Till the day when the paramedics come to her house to take away
her mother for the treatment, she then go to school back. She was treated as a trash at school,
because she had a hygiene problem. Her teacher, Miss Wanda even amazed at her for getting 100
marks in the test. During her absent to school, she did read a lot in encyclopedia given by Eva,
her neighbor who found the encyclopedia in a trash, the whole set except from R to S.
Miss Wanda insisted her to go to school every day because she was an intelligent kid and
did tolerate with her if she could not attend the class with full attendance. Deep in her heart, Lizz
felt sad about school and do not know how to talk about it with anyone. The house that she lived
in was not a house that we can call a home, mess was all around the corner. There was a day
when the people from children welfare came to her house to get her and brought her to the group
home for teenagers. Her life became more miserable and traumatic there after witnesses one of
the girl there being beaten extremely. After a few years, she went home and met her family, and
found out that her father was placed under the shelter for homeless and lost their apartment.

FROM HOMELESS TO HARVARD

She went back to her old apartment, but nothing was there. She was so regret that she
does not go to school and had a new mission in life. On the next day, she goes to school and met
new friends. Not long after that, she run away when her grandfather do not let her best friend,
Chris to move in but instead her friend being chased out from her house. They became homeless
and went to a new strange city to survive. Many obstacles that Lizz had to go through before she
found out that her mother died. After the funeral, Lizz met her father to ask help for the
permission to go to school.
By that, she could go to school and finish 4 years of high school in two. That was her
aim, and she studied everywhere, even when she was working and in the subway. She was one of
the 10 top students who get a chance to go to Boston, with the expenses paid trip. At Harvard,
she was amazed with the surrounding of the college. She really wanted to be part of it, and she
looked for any scholarship that she can apply for her dream to become true. Then, she was
became one of the final candidates of scholarship by The New York Times. Her story, from
homeless to Harvard supposed to be a good example for other people to motivate themselves no
matter how hard the condition is.

FROM HOMELESS TO HARVARD

The story itself being chosen to show how surrounding gives impact to our life. The
struggle to survive in satisfying hunger is one of the psychological needs showed in these scenes:

The first scene shows how Lizz and her sister struggling with her mother for the money, so that
they can use the money to buy food. Instead, when her mother gets the money, she lied and get
out of the house and went out to buy drug. Lizz who followed her mother then satisfy her hunger
when she found some buns in the trash.
Next, she really wanted to be with her family, be accepted and belong. All her life was
dedicated for her family, especially her mother that she loves so much. She met Chris at the
school, and they become very close. These showed the third stage of needs which is
belongingness and love needs where Lizz need love and care from her family and friend.

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But after her mother died, she realized that she needs to take care of herself and be strong
to face all the challenges and obstacles that came afterward. She went to the school, get good
grades and really aim to finish four years of high school studies within two years. She had a good
consuming of time between working and studying. She took five regular subjects, weekend with
programming subject, night school learning French and studied sciences and practicing algebra
till late at night. Her dedication and courage to learn was so strong and consistent. The acts are
rewarding and satisfying her because she really want to learn and go to college after she and her
friends at school went to Harvard themselves to see the college life. These scenes show her drive
for cognitive needs, which reminds her to have knowledge, meaning in life and self-awareness.

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It then leads her to the next stage of needs, which is the self-actualization need. She found
her self-fulfillment and realizes the potential to be someone successful in life. She applied for the
scholarship by The New York Times to pursue her studies to college.

Lizz, who among the candidates that get the chance to change her life by going to college
found the transcendence needs given by The New York Times. The authority who gave out the
scholarship helps the students to achieve their self-actualization, especially Lizz who was a
homeless and come from problematic family.

Self motivation

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From the story, I would like to motivate myself to achieve all the needs in order to
become someone successful in life. I want to be extraordinary and unique. People will point out
to me and asked who you are in the future. There is only one answer, me. I am going to struggle
and demand this world to be in my own particular view. Nobody should set boundaries or
limitation of what my dream should stop at, but instead, I will do it for self fulfilling. Why must
we fulfilling others target or question if within ourselves, we could not find the way to it? I was
thankful to have family and friends that supported me since the beginning of life.
They never force me to follow their expectation but they guide me. They gave me the real
meaning of love, support and care. At this point, I just realized that we need other people, for
myself to fulfill my desire and interest, and for them to show my appreciation towards my
achievement. Back in time, I think my first ambition is the path that I am going towards now. I
had never told my real ambition during school, because I was ashamed that people will take it as
a joke. For me, it is a real target that I want to achieve. Whatever I do, I will do it according to
what I like, and I really want to be the famous person in the world. I found this interesting to be
considered as a dream.
Assuring that I am not going to be the philosophers or the scientists who invented the
technologies, but my point is, I want to be someone that being recognize and remembered by
other people that I love around me. That is my world. I want the freedom of choice to choose my
life afterwards is going to be my decision. Whatever it takes, I am going to be a travel journalist.
I will travel a lot, and share my views to the reader. Along with that, I am not going to miss a
chance to enjoy my interest in photography and videography. I love arts, and I want myself to be
as unique as what art it is.

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Someday, I will have my own business in the area that I love so much. Combining the
greatest taste of the world, healthy awareness and fitness will hit my target. Everything is in my
mind and I will try my very best to achieve it. However, the priority is my family. Seeing my
parents smiling and happy for what I achieved is the only price that suits my target. I will never
let them down, and for that, I must be someone that they can be proud of.

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Conclusion
The challenges while doing the assignment is to really understand each situation and relate them
with the motivational theory found the chapter in Psychology. The story really affecting my
mindset and leads to the motivational drive to perform well in studies and be passionate in
whatever I do. I had learned from the story, that everyone deserves to get the opportunity to learn
and within ourselves, we must have the passion to love the knowledge. Without knowledge, the
view to see the world will be more narrow and useless. We will never want to be out of the box
and achieve our self-actualization. Therefore, we must have the courage to change our life for a
better bright future.

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Bibliography
Chapman, A. (Copyright 2001). Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. Retrieved March 15, 2012 from
http://paf9120fall2010.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html
Cherry, K. (n.d.). What is motivation? Retrieved March 10, 2012, from
http://psychology.about.com/od/mindex/g/motivation-definition.htm
Ciccarelli, S. K., & White, J. N. (2009). Psychology. NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Schizophrenia. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved March 10, 2012,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schizophrenia