The relationship between motivation and mental health has been extensively studied in psychology through several influential theoretical traditions that explain how human needs, goals, beliefs, and meaning shape psychological well-being.

Early work by William James (1890) emphasised the role of personal striving and self-esteem, while Kurt Lewin (1935) developed field theory, demonstrating how goals and environmental forces influence behaviour. Abraham Maslow (1943) proposed the hierarchy of needs, arguing that the fulfilment of basic physiological, safety, belongingness, esteem, self-actualisation, and transcendence needs promotes psychological health.

David McClelland (1961) identified achievement, affiliation, and power as major motivational needs that influence mental functioning, while Albert Bandura (1977) showed that self-efficacy (the belief in one's capability to succeed) strongly predicts resilience and mental well-being. Edward L. Deci and Richard M. Ryan (1985; 2000) further demonstrated through Self-Determination Theory that the satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs is associated with greater psychological well-being and lower levels of anxiety and depression.

From the perspective of Christian psychology, Gary R. Collins (1988) argued that motivation and mental health are strengthened when human behaviour is understood within a Biblical framework of purpose, hope, forgiveness, and relationship with God, while Eric L. Johnson (2007) advocated an integrative Christian psychology in which spiritual formation, virtue, and relationship with God contribute to emotional health alongside empirical psychological principles.

Collectively, these perspectives suggest that motivation is closely linked to mental health because the pursuit of meaningful goals, satisfaction of psychological needs, confidence in one's abilities, and, within Christian psychology, spiritual purpose and faith, all contribute to resilience, flourishing, and psychological well-being.