Achievement motivation is the psychological drive to excel.

According to Atkinson and Feather(1966) the achievement motive is conceived as a latest disposition which is manifested in overt striving only when the individual perceives performance as instrumental to a sense of personal accomplishment.

According to Irving Sarnoff (Mangal, 1989) Achievement motive is defined in terms of the way an individual orients himself towards objects or conditions that he does not possess. if he values those objects and conditions, and he feels that ought to possess them he may be regarded as having an achievement motive.