motivation extrinsic essay

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On what motivates us: a detailed review of intrinsic v. extrinsic motivation

Laurel s. morris.

1 Department of Psychiatry, Depression and Anxiety Center for Discovery and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029 USA

Mora M. Grehl

2 Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122 USA

Sarah B. Rutter

Marishka mehta, margaret l. westwater.

3 Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510 USA

Motivational processes underlie behaviors that enrich the human experience, and impairments in motivation are commonly observed in psychiatric illness. While motivated behavior is often examined with respect to extrinsic reinforcers, not all actions are driven by reactions to external stimuli; some are driven by ‘intrinsic’ motivation. Intrinsically motivated behaviors are computationally similar to extrinsically motivated behaviors, in that they strive to maximize reward value and minimize punishment. However, our understanding of the neurocognitive mechanisms that underlie intrinsically motivated behavior remains limited. Dysfunction in intrinsic motivation represents an important trans-diagnostic facet of psychiatric symptomology, but due to a lack of clear consensus, the contribution of intrinsic motivation to psychopathology remains poorly understood. This review aims to provide an overview of the conceptualization, measurement, and neurobiology of intrinsic motivation, providing a framework for understanding its potential contributions to psychopathology and its treatment. Distinctions between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are discussed, including divergence in the types of associated rewards or outcomes that drive behavioral action and choice. A useful framework for understanding intrinsic motivation, and thus separating it from extrinsic motivation, is developed and suggestions for optimization of paradigms to measure intrinsic motivation are proposed.

Introduction

Motivation is an integral component of human experience. Children spontaneously explore novel items, and adults autonomously engage in new hobbies, even in the absence of clear extrinsic reinforcers. Thus, not all actions are driven by tangible external stimuli or outcomes, known as ‘extrinsic’ motivation, but are driven by more internal drivers, known as ‘intrinsic’ motivation, where the activity is perceived as its own outcome.

Intrinsically motivated behaviors are computationally similar to extrinsically motivated behaviors, in that they strive to maximize goal attainment and minimize punishment, represented mathematically as value and effort cost functions, respectively (Gottlieb, Lopes, & Oudeyer, 2016 ). However, subjective internal value functions are difficult to characterize, and our understanding of how they are computed and integrated is limited (Gottlieb et al., 2016 ).

Dysfunction in intrinsic motivation represents an important transdiagnostic facet of psychiatric symptomology, which is often classified as distinct psychological constructs, such as apathy in neurological disorders, anhedonia in depression, and negative symptoms in schizophrenia. Each of these symptom domains may be underpinned by a shared dysfunction of intrinsic motivation, and interventions targeting intrinsic motivation have the potential to improve treatment outcomes for affected individuals.

However, due to a lack of clear consensus, the contribution of intrinsic motivation to psychiatric disorders remains poorly understood. This review aims to provide an overview of the conceptualization, measurement, and neurobiology of intrinsic motivation, providing a framework for understanding the potential contributions to psychopathology and its treatment.

Historical conceptualizations of intrinsic motivation

During the early 20th century, prominent descriptions of motivation were at odds with each other. Woodworth ( 1918 ) suggested that intrinsic motivation governed activities perpetuated by their own ‘native drive’, whereas Thorndike ( 1911 ) and Watson ( 1913 ) argued that external stimuli governed behavior. Also centered on internal drives, Hull's ( 1943 ) ‘drive theory’ posited that all behaviors were performed to seek or avoid primary biological states, including hunger or pain. However, the drive theory could not explain many behavioral anomalies, such as hungry rats withstanding painful electric shocks to explore a novel environment (Nissen, 1930 ), or rhesus monkeys performing a puzzle task for no biological reason or external reinforcer (Harlow, 1950 ). By narrowly presuming that biological states drive all behavior, drive theory failed to account for instances in which an organism prioritizes higher-order cognitive drives over physiological ones.

The shortcomings of drive theory led to the emergence of alternate theories of intrinsic motivation. Some argued that homeostatic maintenance of optimal biological or cognitive states (Hebb, 1955 ; McClelland & Clark, 1953 ; McClelland, Atkinson, Clark, & Lowell, 1967 ), or mitigation of incongruency or uncertainty (Festinger, 1957 ; Kagan, 1972 ), drove behavior. However, these theories emphasized external stimuli or cognitive representations of external goal states as key drivers of behavior. In the mid-to-late 20th century, several models underscored the importance of novelty-seeking, interest, and autonomy in driving intrinsic motivation. Novelty-seeking was suggested to energize approach behavior via curiosity and exploration that leads to skill mastery, information attainment, or learning (Kaplan & Oudeyer, 2007 ). Interest and enjoyment in an activity might boost intrinsic motivation by engendering ‘flow’, a prolonged state of focus and enjoyment during task engagement that stretches one's skillset (Csikszentmihalyi, 1975 ; Nakamura & Csikszentmihalyi, 2009 ). Finally, self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 1980 ) proposed that human needs for competence, achievement, and autonomy drive intrinsic motivation, aligning with observations that intrinsic motivation stems from an internal perceived autonomy during task engagement (DeCharms, 1968 ; Lamal, 2003 ). These models highlight the role of achievement and perceived autonomy (DeCharms, 1968 ) in driving intrinsic motivation, coinciding with current computational frameworks of intrinsic reward (Chew, Blain, Dolan, & Rutledge, 2021 ; Murayama, Matsumoto, Izuma, & Matsumoto, 2010 ).

The introduction of external goals: a shift to extrinsic motivation

While intrinsic motivation has been proposed to be divorced from external reinforcers, our understanding of motivation has been led largely by using external reinforcers as conceptual and experimental tools. Here, we briefly review historical perspectives on external drivers of motivated behavior, outlining prominent goal- and action-focused models of extrinsic motivation.

Early psychological models of extrinsic motivation suggested that ‘will’ and ‘intention’ fostered goal achievement, emphasizing the influence of goal expectation on action and control (Lewin, 1951 ; Tolman, 1932 ). Within this framework, environmental features, as well as an individual's internal state or memory, determine their actions when pursuing a goal, or, more specifically, the cognitive representation of a goal (Kagan, 1972 ). This requires multiple cognitive representations to be developed, maintained, and updated, with a particular reliance on external stimuli and learning (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 1999 ; Kagan, 1972 ; Kagan & Moss, 1983 ).

Alongside psychological model development, economic models of motivation emerged. These models propose that extrinsic goals, or incentives, elicit motivated behavior via a cost-benefit analysis, where motivated choice occurs when benefits outweigh costs. More recently, behavioral economics has considered how individual personality traits, biases, and irrationalities influence motivated behavior (Strombach, Strang, Park, & Kenning, 2016 ). A recent model (Strombach et al., 2016 ) incorporates various factors into the classical cost-benefit analysis, including traditional intrinsic (e.g. satisfaction) and extrinsic drivers (e.g. money), with negative influences from costs (e.g. effort, pain), which are merged into a single dynamic, subjective and state-dependent factor that drives motivated behavior. Though this approach is powerful, the explicit focus on incentives provides limited explanatory power for various paradoxical behaviors, including rodents overcoming the high cost to self-stimulate certain brain regions (e.g. nucleus accumbens; Nac) or extrinsic reinforcers' dampening effect on intrinsic motivation.

In reinforcement learning models of decision-making, an organism, or agent, learns which actions maximize total reward. This process has been formalized within computational sciences and modern artificial intelligence systems (Sutton & Barto, 1981 ; Witten, 1977 ), where learning and decision-making depend on an extrinsic outcome. One theory suggests that motivated action is driven solely by a need to reduce reward prediction errors (RPEs; Kaplan and Oudeyer, 2007 ), or the mismatch between expectation and outcome (Montague, Dayan, & Sejnowski, 1996 ; Schultz et al., 1997 ). RPEs can also be conceptualized as valuation signals for novel outcomes or unexpected stimuli. RPE-based learning then drives motivated behavior, or action choice, but even if the agent displays intact encoding of action or outcome value, motivated behavior can be dampened by reduced novelty. This highlights the role of novelty, expectation and prediction in learning per se , rather than choice valuation.

In action-focused models of motivation, incentives can trigger approach or avoidance behavior by signaling a potential goal state (Berridge, Robinson, & Aldridge, 2009 ). Incentive motivation thus relies on expectancy, probability, and value of outcomes, which are thought to dictate behavioral choice and decision-making. While greater reliance on stimulus-outcome rather than stimulus-response contingencies has led some to describe incentive motivation as proactive (Beckmann & Heckhausen, 2018 ), others have characterized it as reactive due to the central role of learning from past experience (Bolles, 1972 ). Reliance on an expected outcome was central to behaviorism (Watson, 1913 , 1930 ) and operant conditioning (Skinner, 1938 ), which assume that actions are driven by a reinforcer, and instrumental value is assigned to the behavior itself. Stimulus-response pairs dominate behaviorism and modern theories of habitual behavior (Gläscher, Daw, Dayan, & O'Doherty, 2010 ), where the dependency on previously reinforced actions ultimately governs motivated choice (de Wit et al., 2011 ; Gillan, Robbins, Sahakian, van den Heuvel, & van Wingen, 2016 ; Voon et al., 2014 ). However, this renders behaviors as repetitive, insensitive to punishment and divorced from goals (Robbins, Gillan, Smith, de Wit, & Ersche, 2012 ). Therefore, these action-focused models of motivated behavior almost entirely discount intrinsic motivation since extrinsic motivators usurp control of behavior.

Several limitations of extrinsic motivation models must be considered when attempting to characterize intrinsic motivation. First, for cost-benefit analysis and reinforcement learning, an internal representation of the outcome must first be learned, which requires previous experience of the goal. However, intrinsic motivation can occur for novel outcomes, or behaviors that are uncertain or ambiguous. Second, motivation can occur for activities that may already be fully predictable, marking a significant limitation for reinforcement-learning models of motivation, which assume that reward prediction errors drive learning for motivated action. Third, these frameworks cannot fully explain spontaneous novelty seeking or exploratory behavior, in which no external reward is expected and no cost is overcome (Deci et al., 1999 ; Marsden, Ma, Deci, Ryan, & Chiu, 2014 ).

Separating and integrating intrinsic and extrinsic motivation

A key question is whether intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can, or should, be experimentally or theoretically separated. There is some evidence that they are dissociable constructs at the neural level. The most compelling support comes from case reports of patients with basal ganglia lesions who developed ‘psychic akinesia’, a syndrome characterized by difficulty with self-generated action initiation but no difficulty in performing complex cognitive or motor tasks when prompted (Laplane, Baulac, Widlocher, & Dubois, 1984 ; Lugaresi, Montagna, Morreale, & Gallassi, 1990 ). In patients with alien hand syndrome, medial prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) lesions lead to a loss of intentional motor control, whereas (pre)-supplementary motor area lesions lead to impairments in implementing motor intentions (Brugger, Galovic, Weder, & Kägi, 2015 ; Nachev, Kennard, & Husain, 2008 ). Preclinical findings further show that photostimulation of GABAergic amygdala projections modulates extrinsic motivation without affecting intrinsically motivated behavior (Seo et al., 2016 ). Together, these findings suggest that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation reflect different cortico-striatal-limbic circuits.

Behavioral research primarily supports the view that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are partially distinct, interacting processes. For example, if the motivation for intrinsic and extrinsic goals were independent constructs, they might demonstrate an additive or subtractive effect on each other (Woodworth, 1921 ). Indeed, the expectation (Liu & Hou, 2017 ) and experience (Badami, VaezMousavi, Wulf, & Namazizadeh, 2011 ) of an extrinsic reinforcer can increase intrinsic motivation. However, reports of the ‘undermining effect’, in which an external reinforcer reduces intrinsic motivation (Cerasoli, Nicklin, & Ford, 2014 ; Deci, 1971 ; Deci, Benware, & Landy, 1974 ; Lepper & Greene, 1978 ; Lepper, Greene, & Nisbett, 1973 ) have sparked debate over how extrinsic reinforcers affect internally-motived behaviors (Cameron & Pierce, 2002 ; Lamal, 2003 ; Lepper, Keavney, & Drake, 1996 ). One explanation for the undermining effect suggests that the presence of an external reinforcer shifts one's perception of the locus of control over the behavior from internal to external (Deci & Ryan, 1980 ). This implicates a key role of agency, or the belief of action ownership, in intrinsic motivation. While controversial, mounting evidence supports this account of the undermining effect, where various extrinsic motivators (e.g. food, social observation; Ryan, 1982 ) decrease intrinsic motivation when their delivery is contingent on task-performance.

A useful framework for parsing motivated action into intrinsic and extrinsic is the Rubicon model of action phases (Heckhausen & Heckhausen, 2018 ; Heckhausen, 1989 ). Within this framework, pre-decisional option deliberation occurs, which is followed by choice intention formation and planning, volitional action, outcome achievement, and evaluation ( Fig. 1 ). Husain and Roiser ( 2018 ) recently proposed a complementary model to deconstruct apathy and anhedonia into underlying cognitive processes, including option generation, anticipation, action initiation, prediction, consumption and learning. This parcellation broadly reflects the five main stages of the Rubicon model: (1) pre-decisional deliberation ( option generation ); (2) intention formation, planning, initiation ( anticipation ); (3) volitional action ( action initiation, prediction ), (4) outcome achievement ( consumption ); and (5) evaluation ( learning ; Figure 1 ). Within these overlapping frameworks, the initial pre-decisional deliberation/option generation phase represents the point at which intrinsic and extrinsic facets of motivation diverge, as early drivers of behavior can be intrinsic (e.g. enjoyment, interest, exploration) or extrinsic (e.g. social reward). The differences between these early drivers highlight a key distinction between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, in which the former is a fundamentally proactive process and the latter reactive.

Schematic framework for parsing motivated action. Motivated decision-making and action is parsed into separate phases of choice, action and outcome valuation, combining and building upon separate frameworks including the Rubicon model of action phases, well-established computational mechanisms and a recent cognitive framework describing anhedonia and apathy. During choice valuation, pre-decisional deliberation includes option generation, a cost-benefit analysis and option selection. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation diverges during this early choice valuation phase. Once choice valuation has been computed and an option selected, planning and anticipation occurs. During action valuation, volitional action is initiated and action sustainment or acceleration is maintained. During outcome valuation, outcome achievement and consumption ensue, followed by evaluation based on learning via prediction error (PE) updating. Created with BioRender.com .

If a behavior were intrinsically motivated, the pre-decisional deliberation phase might be determined by biological drives, the need to restore homeostasis (Hebb, 1949 ; Hull, 1943 ), or a state of incongruency resolution (Festinger, 1957 ; Kagan, 1972 ) as described by early theories of intrinsic motivation. In contemporary frameworks, novelty-seeking, exploration, or interest in learning or achievement would render subsequent actions as intrinsically motivated. If a behavior were extrinsically motivated, this pre-decisional deliberation phase would represent the cost-benefit analysis in economic models, prediction-error minimization in reinforcement learning, or effort-reward trade-off computation. Under incentive motivation and behaviorist theories, the pre-decisional deliberation phase would be triggered by conditioned stimuli making conscious deliberation unnecessary and inefficient.

A combination of intrinsic and extrinsic factors likely enters into the pre-decisional deliberation phase to guide motivated behavior ( Fig. 1 ). Although intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are conceptually distinct processes, attempts to formally define them have identified several mechanisms by which they interact, leading to questions about their dissociability. Since they can interact in an additive or subtractive fashion, they may indeed be separate, independent drivers of behavior that are amalgamated during a pre-decisional deliberation phase of behavioral choice.

Measuring intrinsic motivation

Human behavior.

Early attempts to quantify intrinsic motivation were largely based on behavioral observation, wherein intrinsic motivation was measured as free choice of an activity in the absence of an external stimulus or performance rating (Butler & Nisan, 1986 ; Daniel & Esser, 1980 ; Liu & Hou, 2017 ). These studies also implemented self-report measures of participants' interest or enjoyment in an activity. While such measures do capture intrinsic motivation as inherent task enjoyment, they are limited by their qualitative and indirect nature, as well as by variability in participant insight. However, more objective measures are difficult to develop due to the inherently unobservable nature of intrinsic motivation.

Since spontaneous novelty-seeking and exploratory behavior reflect intrinsic motivation, one candidate objective measure may be the explore-exploit paradigm (Gittins & Jones, 1979 ; Robbins, 1952 ). In explore-exploit foraging tasks, participants must choose among various options and either exploit a previously reinforced choice or explore a novel alternative option. An individual's tendency to either explore an environment or exploit their pre-existing knowledge is influenced by perseverance (Von Culin et al., 2014 ), which acts as an indicator of confidence in the absence of immediate reward. Healthy adults flexibly employ a mix of exploitative and exploratory choices, where striatal and prefrontal dopamine signaling is proposed to drive exploration and exploitation, respectively (Badre, Doll, Long,, & Frank,, 2012 ; Daw, O'Doherty, Dayan, Seymour, & Dolan, 2006 ; Mansouri, Koechlin, Rosa, & Buckley, 2017 ). While these tasks capture one's willingness to trade-off exploratory v. exploitative behaviors, they do not measure free-choice exploratory behavior in the absence of explicit reinforcers, which would be most consistent with intrinsic motivation.

Paradigms that allow an individual to choose to explore an environment without extrinsic reinforcers, or to engage in a previously enjoyable or interesting activity, would more closely index intrinsic motivation. Additionally, outcomes that relate to achievement or autonomy, without socially rewarding feedback or monetary outcomes, would also putatively engage intrinsic motivation. Task parameters related to exploration, enjoyment, achievement, and autonomy can each be modulated and computationally modeled to determine their effects on free choice or behavioral activation vigor.

Current computational approaches depend on modeling decision-making, outcome learning, or action-outcome associations to drive our understanding of motivation. Traditional decision-making models often rely on softmax functions to compute values of available actions (Wilson & Collins, 2019 ), where action selection is based on the ‘policy’ of the best outcome. Computationally, an action selection process computes the probability of an action occurring in any state and the expected reward. A policy is developed based on the assumption that motivated actions are performed to increase the probability of rewards and decrease the probability of punishment. Yet, in everyday life, our actions can be motivated by an arbitrary cue that may signal an internal rewarding state. For example, a standard algorithm solving for motivated action assumes that all actions have equal probability, yet this discounts the unknown drivers and evaluators of internal rewards. Hence, they act as limiting factors to the applicability of decision-making models in studies of intrinsic motivation.

Neuroimaging

Functional neuroimaging [e.g., functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), electroencephalography (EEG)] offers a measurement modality that may be particularly apt for the study of internally driven processes like intrinsic motivation. Research using fMRI has characterized the neural correlates of various internal processes that lack clear behavioral indicators (e.g. rumination, emotion regulation, pain perception; Zhou et al., 2020 ; Wagner, N'Diaye, Ethofer, and Vuilleumier, 2011 ), yet few studies have assessed the neural correlates of intrinsic motivation in humans, which likely reflects the limitations in its behavioral measurement. Studies have largely assessed intrinsic motivation via comparisons with neural responses to extrinsic reinforcers during fMRI, which can be correlated with self-reported intrinsic motivation (Bengtsson, Lau, & Passingham, 2009 ; Chew et al., 2021 ; Linke et al., 2010 ). Despite the relative paucity of neuroimaging studies that clearly separate intrinsic v. extrinsic motivation, existing work provides preliminary insight into the neural circuitry of intrinsic motivation.

First, extrinsic reinforcers have elicited amygdala, ACC, ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and ventral striatal (VS) or Nac activity in healthy subjects that was associated with higher self-reported extrinsic motivation but lower self-reported intrinsic motivation (Linke et al., 2010 ). This could suggest that intrinsic motivation relates to a lower sensitivity of these regions to extrinsic reinforcers, general deactivation of these regions, or that the dampening impact of extrinsic reinforcers on intrinsic motivation is subserved by these regions. Others report that intrinsic motivation (operationalized as the amount of free-time spent on a puzzle-task, which did not relate to task enjoyment, interest, or accuracy), was associated with deactivation in the amygdala, dorsal ACC, dorsomedial striatum, and insula during puzzle-task onset (Marsden et al., 2014 ). This is another piece of evidence linking neural deactivation to intrinsic motivation; however, since these tasks were not related to traditional ‘intrinsic motivators’ like task enjoyment, findings may relate to boredom-reduction behavior that might be more related to punishment avoidance rather than intrinsic motivation per se .

Bengtsson et al. ( 2009 ) operationalized intrinsic motivation as task-performance with and without explicit experimental observation during fMRI scanning, which boosted self-reported intrinsic motivation. The authors found greater neural activation of ACC, OFC, and lateral prefrontal cortex during task-performance errors when participants were observed (Bengtsson et al., 2009 ). While implicating a similar network of brain regions as prior studies, these findings cannot be divorced from error-related neural activation modulated by task salience (e.g. observed v. not).

In contrast, Murayama et al . ( 2010 ) provide a more optimal operationalization of intrinsic motivation, in which participants performed a task that was previously rated as inherently interesting, and successful task performance served as the intrinsic reward. During fMRI scanning, feedback for both extrinsic (monetary feedback) and intrinsic (accuracy feedback) rewards elicited VS activation. Participants then had the option to perform the same task without feedback, and intrinsic motivation was operationalized as time spent on the second version of the task. During the second session, VS activation was only diminished for extrinsic rewards, which could reflect reduced VS habituation to intrinsic rewards (Murayama et al., 2010 , 2015 ). Additionally, greater reductions in neural responses to extrinsic reinforcers were related to lower intrinsic motivation (i.e. task engagement time outside of the scanner), suggesting that neural habituation to extrinsic reinforcers may relate to lower intrinsic motivation. A recent computational neuroimaging study modeled intrinsic rewards as successful spatial-motor task performance without experienced errors, which was divorced from learning (Chew et al., 2021 ). This modeling of intrinsic rewards was akin to the accuracy feedback operationalization of Murayama et al . ( 2010 ). Both extrinsic (monetary) reward and intrinsic performance-based rewards (successful task completion) recruited vmPFC activation, which related to subjective happiness (Chew et al., 2021 ). Although limited in their ability to dissociate activation from task performance per se and explicit feedback related to achievement, these studies are the closest examples of objective measures of intrinsic motivation, and they suggest that putative reward-processing regions (VS, vmPFC) encode intrinsic rewards.

Complementary studies have examined how curiosity, or the intrinsic motivation to learn, modulates neural responses and influences memory recall (Gruber, Gelman, & Ranganath, 2014 ; Kang et al., 2009 ). High-curiosity states augment midbrain and v. activity (Gruber et al., 2014 ), as well as bilateral caudate (Kang et al., 2009 ) and anterior insula (Lee & Reeve, 2017 ) responses, which may improve learning and memory. As these paradigms index intrinsic motivation independently from a rewarding outcome, they perhaps provide the strongest support for partially overlapping circuits of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation.

The brain's dopamine system supports a range of appetitive and aversive motivational processes, including behavioral activation, exertion of effort, and sustained task engagement (Diederen & Fletcher, 2020 ; Salamone, Yohn, López-Cruz, San Miguel, & Correa, 2016 ). The mesolimbic pathway, projecting from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) to limbic regions, including the Nac, amygdala, and hippocampus, facilitates reinforcement and associative learning by acting as a ‘Go’ signal for foraging or exploration (Huang, Lv, & Wu, 2016 ). Although it has long been known that dopamine transmission subserves motivational processes, some evidence suggests that it is particularly important for intrinsic motivation. For example, mesolimbic dopamine contributes to exploration for the sake of interest (DeYoung, 2013 ; Panksepp & Moskal, 2008 ), and novel and unexpected stimuli elicit phasic dopamine spikes in rodents (Fiorillo, 2003 ; Hooks & Kalivas, 1994 ; Schultz, 1998 ). In patients with depression, deep-brain stimulation of dopaminergic brain regions including the Nac (Schlaepfer et al., 2007 ) and the mesolimbic dopamine projections from the VTA (Fenoy et al., 2018 ) increased subjective interest in, and motivational energy for, previously enjoyable activities (Schlaepfer et al., 2007 ). Dopamine has also been associated with intrinsically motivated flow states (de Manzano et al., 2013 ; Gyurkovics et al., 2016 ).

However, since VTA dopamine spiking is reduced for expected events (Schultz, 1998 ), it may not be a strong candidate neural mechanism for intrinsic motivation, which can occur for predictable activities. Efforts to reconcile the role of dopamine in learning and motivation suggest that while phasic cell firing signals RPEs (Kim et al., 2020 ), phasic dopamine release and local modulation in key regions, such as the VS/NAc, relates to approach motivation (Berke, 2018 ; Mohebi et al., 2019 ). Indeed, while VTA dopamine cell firing occurs during reward prediction, only NAc dopamine release covaries with reward availability and ramps up during approach and consumption of reward (Mohebi et al., 2019 ). Moreover, increasing dopamine in rodents increases their willingness to exert effort, and this has since been replicated across species, including via pharmacological manipulation in humans (Salamone, Correa, Farrar, & Mingote, 2007 ; Treadway & Zald, 2011 ). This suggests that, while VTA dopamine spiking underpins reward prediction and learning, it is local NAc dopamine release that encodes motivational drive.

Opioids, norepinephrine, and related neurotransmitter systems

Though a comprehensive account of the neurotransmitter systems subserving motivated behavior is beyond the scope of this review, we note that endogenous opioid and cannabinoid systems may uniquely modulate intrinsically motivated behavior. For example, mu- and delta-opioid receptor activation underlies the pleasurable effects of opioid and non-opioid drugs of abuse (Berrendero, Robledo, Trigo, Martín-García, & Maldonado, 2010 ; Trigo, Martin-García, Berrendero, Robledo, & Maldonado, 2010 ), as well as primary reinforcers (Hsu et al., 2013 ; Kelley & Berridge, 2002 ). Activation of mu-opioid receptors has also been shown to mediate motivational states following delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) administration in rodents (Ghozland et al., 2002 ), likely via interactions with the mesolimbic dopamine system. Further evidence implicates antidepressant effects of endogenous opioids in both animals and humans (Peciña et al., 2018 ), which many partly reflect improved intrinsic motivation (e.g. time mice spent swimming during the forced swim test; Kastin, Scollan, Ehrensing, Schally, and Coy, 1978 ). Additionally, the endocannabinoid system interacts with both endogenous opioid and dopaminergic systems to influence intrinsic motivation, such as social play (Trezza et al., 2012 ; Trezza & Vanderschuren, 2008 ), and voluntary exercise, in rodents (Dubreucq, Koehl, Abrous, Marsicano, & Chaouloff, 2010 ). Since these systems have been primarily examined in animal models, pharmacological manipulation in humans would be an important next step in delineating the contribution of opioid and endocannabinoid systems to intrinsic v. extrinsic motivation.

Intrinsic motivation and psychiatry: focus on anhedonia

Problems with motivation are observed across many neuropsychiatric disorders, and these often correspond to distinct symptoms ( Table 1 ). This section focuses on anhedonia, a reduced ability to experience pleasure (Ribot, 1986 ), as a prevalent clinical manifestation of deficient intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

Explicit studies of ‘intrinsic motivation’ in neuropsychiatric disorders

Note: Cohort abbreviations: AUD, alcohol use disorder; FEP, first-episode psychosis; MDD, major depressive disorder; PD, Parkinson's disease; SCZ, schizophrenia; SUDs, substance use disorders; SZA, schizoaffective disorder. Evidence abbreviations: EM, extrinsic motivation; IM, intrinsic motivation.

In the Diagnostic and Statistical Model of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM- 5 ), anhedonia serves as one of two cardinal symptoms of depressive disorders, where it is defined as the ‘loss of interest or pleasure in all, or almost all, activities’, (American Psychiatric Association, 2013 ). The second cardinal symptom relates to persistent depressed mood. Approximately one-third of individuals with depression report clinically significant anhedonia (Pelizza & Ferrari, 2009 ), and these individuals are at-risk for poorer treatment outcomes, including nonresponse, relapse, and increased suicidality, relative to their non-anhedonic peers (Morris, Bylsma, & Rottenberg, 2009 ; Nierenberg et al., 1999 ).

Anhedonia remains an important clinical target that, by definition, implicates perturbations in intrinsically-motivated behavior, yet most empirical studies of anhedonia and motivation have investigated their relationship using extrinsic reinforcers. Findings broadly support theories of reward dysfunction in depression (reviewed by Sescousse, Caldú, Segura, and Dreher, 2013 ; Roiser & Husain, 2018; Borsini, Wallis, Zunszain, Pariante, and Kempton, 2020 ), where anhedonia has been associated with a reduced bias toward a monetary reward in individuals with depression (Liu et al., 2011 ) and their first-degree relatives (Liu et al., 2016 ). Children who are at-risk for depression show reduced VS and anterior insula responses to monetary gains, implicating blunted reward sensitivity as an antecedent to anhedonia (Luking, Pagliaccio, Luby, & Barch, 2016 ). Moreover, vmPFC responses during unexpected reward receipt may indirectly relate to anhedonia in depressed patients by modulating task motivation (Segarra et al., 2016 ). Interestingly, reward sensitivity disturbances in depression might not extend to aberrant reward learning (Huys, Pizzagalli, Bogdan, & Dayan, 2013 ) where adults with moderate depression show intact VS RPE-signaling during probabilistic learning (Rutledge et al., 2017 ). Nevertheless, there have been suggestions that perturbations in domains more related to intrinsic motivation, such as model-based future planning or effort initiation and invigoration, may be key in underlying anhedonia (Berwian et al., 2020 ; Cooper, Arulpragasam, & Treadway, 2018 ; Rutledge et al., 2017 ). Finally, affect can also alter both the valence and evaluation of an activity, which can, in turn, modulate the likelihood of selecting a more inherently interesting task (Isen & Reeve, 2006 ). Anhedonic individuals have more pessimistic likelihood estimates and reduced positive affective forecasts relative to controls while also demonstrating greater reliance on negative emotion during future-oriented cognition (Marroquín & Nolen-Hoeksema, 2015 ).

While few studies have implemented objective measures of intrinsic motivation in studying anhedonia, recent work links this symptom with difficulties with representations of future states during early stages of motivated behavior (Moutoussis et al., 2018 ). Since intrinsic motivation is driven more by proactive factors as opposed to the more reactive domain of extrinsic motivation, parsing future-oriented decision-making might provide novel insights not only into mechanisms of intrinsic motivation but also anhedonia. When considering the pre-decisional deliberation phase of motivated action ( Fig. 1 ), the representation of a future state may be critical for distinguishing intrinsic v. extrinsic motivation. For example, disrupted representations of intrinsic reinforcers (e.g. autonomy, achievement, task enjoyment, novelty seeking), energy expenditure (Treadway, Cooper, & Miller, 2019 ; Winch, Moberly, & Dickson, 2014 ), or fatigue (Müller, Klein-Flügge, Manohar, Husain, & Apps, 2021 ) might disrupt choice deliberation and interrupt ensuing stages of motivation. This could critically determine the capacity for self-generated, intrinsically-motivated actions (Husain & Roiser, 2018 ). However, relatively few studies have examined this distinction. One study developed a cognitive task that aimed to capture separate measures of self-generated ( intrinsic ) v. externally generated ( extrinsic ) motivation during the option-generation phase (Morris et al., 2020 ). This distinction linked self-generated option generation (intrinsic motivation) to anhedonia symptoms in healthy adults (Morris et al., 2020 ). However, this task still relies on extrinsic rewards, and there is a need for improved tasks that index both behavioral and neural correlates of intrinsic drivers of motivated behavior.

Summary and future directions

In this review, we summarize how intrinsic motivation has been conceptualized, measured, and related to neural function to elucidate its role in psychopathology. In contrast to extrinsic motivation, which has been rapidly incorporated into prominent cognitive, computational, and neurobiological models of human behavior, knowledge of intrinsic motivation remains limited due to evolving conceptualizations, imprecise measurement, and incomplete characterization of its biological correlates. We identify three potential areas of interest for future research.

First, additional objective measures of intrinsically motivation should be developed. This remains challenging experimentally since even the closest approximations of intrinsic motivation (Murayama et al., 2010 ; Rutledge et al., 2017 ) define the construct relative to extrinsic motivation, and other paradigms (e.g. exploration/exploitation tasks) rely on the presence of extrinsic reinforcers. Rather than defining motivated behavior as intrinsic or extrinsic, a more tractable approach might be to consider separate drivers of behavior that can be intrinsic or extrinsic. Future paradigms could index intrinsic motivation by characterizing the effects of intrinsic v. extrinsic reinforcers on motivation for an activity that is enjoyable. Such a design would enable more complex modeling of the effects of distinct reinforcers, and interactions between them, on motivated behavior, which would resolve inconsistencies surrounding the impact of extrinsic reinforcers on intrinsic motivation. For example, monetary incentives might reduce motivation only when a perceived agency is low, or when task enjoyment is high. These interactions might explain paradoxical observations like the undermining effect.

Second, computational models are needed to characterize intrinsic motivation. Computational models of motivation have been successfully implemented in studies of extrinsic motivation, yet few are appropriate for intrinsic motivation due to a focus on action-outcome associations. However, if the intrinsic reward were operationalized as a measurable outcome (e.g. completion of an enjoyable task), reinforcement-learning models could estimate how intrinsic reward value is represented. Advancements in the computational area could significantly improve understanding of the latent processes underlying (ab)normal decision-making, thereby identifying novel therapeutic targets.

Third, although evidence supports the bifurcation of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation at the psychological level, findings at the neural level are more equivocal. Given the overarching role of the mesolimbic dopamine system in learning, reward value estimation, and exploratory behavior, it is perhaps unsurprising that current evidence supports largely overlapping neural circuits for intrinsically and extrinsically motivated behavior. One potential avenue involves targeted pharmacological manipulations or neuromodulation of cortico-limbic circuits to determine if intrinsically and extrinsically motivated behaviors can be systematically modulated in humans. By elucidating the neural circuits of distinct motivational processes and their associations with specific symptom profiles, this approach would improve targeted interventions for highly heterogenous and debilitating disorders like depression.

Financial support

All authors report no financial disclosures. This work was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health (LSM, grant number K01MH120433) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (MLW, T32DA022975).

What Is Extrinsic Motivation and Does It Really Work?

Extrinsic motivation can be an effective method of persuasion when used in moderation.

We’ve all been motivated by external rewards at some point in our lives — from getting stickers for successful potty training as a kid to participating in a survey in exchange for a gift card as an adult.

Whatever incentives you’ve been driven by, this type of reward-based behavior is referred to as extrinsic motivation. It’s a psychological concept that can promote positive outcomes.

The theory of extrinsic motivation suggests that an individual is recognized for their positive behavior or effort with a reward.

This reward can be either tangible (something physical, like money or gold stars) or intangible (something psychological, like praise or encouragement).

What is extrinsic motivation?

Extrinsic motivation is a form of operant conditioning . This is when a new behavior is learned by the consequence of another behavior.

As such, extrinsic motivation is a learning tool to help people achieve desired behaviors. Similar to classical conditioning , you can use operant conditioning to teach someone how to avoid negative consequences.

Extrinsic motivation works by stimulating the brain’s reward system. This triggers a release of the neurotransmitter dopamine once the desired behavior is completed and the reward is attained.

While it can be an effective parenting tactic , extrinsic motivation extends to individuals of all ages.

Here are some examples:

• A young child who eats vegetables is rewarded with dessert.
• A college student who earns good grades can keep their athletic scholarship.
• A professional adult who goes above and beyond what’s required for their job receives a promotion.

Extrinsic vs. intrinsic: What’s the difference?

By definition, extrinsic motivation uses external factors to encourage behavior.

Intrinsic motivation is also reward-driven, but it’s based on internal gratification versus external recognition.

For example, if cooking provides you with a deep sense of satisfaction , you’re intrinsically rewarded by your desire to cook your own meals. Intrinsic motivation is driving your impulse to cook because you find the activity of cooking personally fulfilling.

On the flip side, if you cook because you typically receive praise from others about how great your cooking is, you could be extrinsically motivated to cook, since acknowledgment from others makes you feel good about yourself and gives you a self-esteem boost .

The external recognition you receive elicits a positive psychological response in your brain’s reward system, even though praise itself is not a tangible reward.

Examples of extrinsic motivation

Tangible rewards are physical, while intangible rewards are psychological.

Examples of intangible rewards include:

• A child shares their toys with a classmate to avoid a fight, which could lead to punishment.
• An aspiring playwright who yearns for recognition receives praise and accolades for their latest production.

Examples of tangible rewards include:

• An adolescent who completes their household chores for the week fulfills the bargain of earning their agreed upon screen time .
• A restaurant employee picks up additional shifts at work to make extra money to pay their bills.
• An older adult makes substantial changes to their diet and exercise regimens on the advice of their doctor and becomes physically healthier as a result.

Is extrinsic motivation effective?

A review study from 2014 indicates that extrinsic motivation can be an effective tool in many everyday situations. The researchers suggest that while extrinsic motivation can produce a negative outcome in some very specific situations, the rewards themselves are generally not considered harmful.

Everyone is motivated differently, which means that extrinsic motivation may not always be the best method of persuasion for every individual.

In fact, with too much extrinsic motivation, some people may become encouraged only by the prospect of a reward. Older research from 1973 posited that excessive extrinsic rewards can actually lead to a decrease in your motivation to earn them.

Here’s a look at the pros and cons of extrinsic motivation and when intrinsic motivation might offer a more meaningful outcome.

Extrinsic motivation can lead to positive behavioral changes and help boost productivity in the classroom and workplace.

While there is limited research on the effects of extrinsic motivation specifically, many studies examine the effects of both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards.

For instance, a 2020 study suggests that both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation can improve memory and attention. The researchers found that monetary-driven performance (extrinsic) filtered out irrelevant tasks, while curiosity-driven performance (intrinsic) led to a state of heightened attention.

In addition, research from 2019 found that subjects who participated in community gardening were extrinsically motivated by a sense of responsibility and enhanced community . Subjects were also intrinsically motivated by an improvement in their mental well-being.

While extrinsic motivation can create positive changes in children and adults alike, the behavior itself is often devoid of passion.

Whether an individual is motivated by rewards such as an extended curfew, their first smartphone , or money, it could mean they’re engaging in certain positive behaviors and activities only to reap their desired rewards.

In some cases, if someone is motivated only by external rewards, they may just do the bare minimum to receive the reward — the primary source of their desire.

Over time, a phenomenon known as the overjustification effect can actually start to decrease an individual’s motivation to behave in a certain way as the reward starts to lose its luster.

For instance, a 2016 study shows that children’s willingness to share with other children diminished when they received a material reward compared with those who received verbal praise or no reward at all.

When a person is intrinsically motivated, however, they’re more likely to perform well or behave in a positive manner if they’re truly invested in the activity itself, since it provides them with a sense of agency and purpose.

Should I try extrinsic motivation with my kid?

Extrinsic motivation can help to encourage positive behaviors in children, but it can also backfire.

When a child is always rewarded for their good behavior or when they complete a certain task, they might come to expect to always get an external reward for their positive efforts.

Intrinsic motivation can be more effective in the long run, since it encourages children to engage in an activity they find personally rewarding.

When children realize that personal satisfaction can feel just as good as getting to stay up an hour later or have an extra scoop of ice cream, they may begin to realize there are other things in life that bring them a sense of pleasure and satisfaction than physical rewards.

Eventually, they may even start to change some of their behaviors on their own.

Let’s recap

Extrinsic motivation can be a useful strategy to complete a task or meet your academic, personal, or professional goals .

But even if you’re motivated by physical rewards (a paycheck) or psychological rewards (praise or recognition), remember that intrinsic motivation is still considered an ideal motivator for the long term.

If you’re using extrinsic motivation to motivate someone else, start by making sure the reward you’re offering is something they’ll be motivated by. Keep in mind that when trying extrinsic motivation with a child, you’ll want to do so in moderation to avoid the overjustification effect.

Nurturing your child’s interests can teach them intrinsic motivation and help them start to hone their passions and become more self-assured. There’s even a chance they might start to receive external praise for pursuing their passions by virtue of their self-directed motivations .

Last medically reviewed on September 23, 2021

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• Di Domenico SI, et al. (2017). The emerging neuroscience of intrinsic motivation: A new frontier in self-determination research. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2017.00145/full
• Duan H, et al. (2020). The effect of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on memory formation: Insight from behavioral and imaging study.  https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00429-020-02074-x
• Jovanovic D, et al. (2014). Relationship between rewards and intrinsic motivation for learning — researches review. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042814050009
• Lepper, et al. (1973). Undermining children's intrinsic interest with extrinsic reward: A test of the "overjustification" hypothesis. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281453299
• Robinson LJ, et al. (2012). Effects of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on attention and memory. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0001691812000911?via%3Dihub
• Ulber J, et al. (2016). Extrinsic rewards diminish costly sharing in 3-year-olds.  https://srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cdev.12534

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Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Motivation: What’s the Difference?

Charlotte Nickerson

Research Assistant at Harvard University

Undergraduate at Harvard University

Charlotte Nickerson is a student at Harvard University obsessed with the intersection of mental health, productivity, and design.

Learn about our Editorial Process

Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

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Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

On This Page:

Key Takeaways

• Intrinsic motivation describes the undertaking of an activity for its inherent satisfaction, while extrinsic motivation describes behavior driven by external rewards or punishments, abstract or concrete.
• Intrinsic motivation comes from within the individual, while extrinsic motivation comes from outside the individual.
• Psychologists such as Skinner and Thorndike have been creating models of externally-motivated learning since the early 20th century; however, theories of intrinsic motivation emerged a century later. Whether intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are mutually exclusive is a popular debate in motivational psychology.
• Academics and professionals alike have applied theories of motivation to management principles as well as educational situations.
• Research suggests that when something we love to do, like icing cakes, becomes our job, our intrinsic and extrinsic motivations to do it may change.

Scholars have described several key differences between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (Mitchell, 2013):

What is Intrinsic Motivation?

Intrinsic motivation involves the doing of an activity for its inherent satisfaction rather than for any obvious external reward (Oudeyer and Kaplan, 2009).

If we are intrinsically motivated, the reward is the sheer challenge and enjoyment of the task and the satisfaction of seeing it through.

Intrinsic motivation is defined as the doing of an activity for its inherent satisfaction rather than for some separable consequence. When intrinsically motivated, a person is moved to act for the fun or challenge entailed rather than because of external products, pressures, or rewards. Ryan and Deci (2000, p. 56),

Types of Intrinsic Motivation

Researchers identified several different types of intrinsic motivation. One of the most notable of these frameworks is the “4 C’s” — challenge, curiosity, control, and context.

White (1959) described the idea of the effectance or mastery motives, which suggests that people seek out challenges and new skills to master solely because of the pleasure of accomplishment.

For example, as White notes, young children may spend great amounts of time learning how to walk and talk without extensive extrinsic reinforcement (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

Achievement-based motivation aims to achieve a goal for personal development reasons. People with achievement motivation may feel worthy when the feat is achieved.

For example, someone may undertake a multi-day hike up a mountain because of the feeling of accomplishment that reaching the peak gives them.

Berlyn (1960) described curiosity and other forms of motivation involving learning as inherent to people’s constant process of getting to know their worlds.

For example, hiding something from a child generally creates a very strong motive for the child to discover what has been hidden (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

Competence motivation, also called learning motivation, is an intrinsic motivation driven by curiosity and a willingness to develop skills. For example, when a salesperson learns new sales techniques because they want to learn something new and improve their work, they expect an external reward.

The first person to explicitly coin the term intrinsic motivation was Hunt (1961). Hunt focused on the motivational value of having a sense of control.

Following Piaget’s observations that even infants seem to undergo a systematic process of experimentation and exploration, Hunt emphasized that people find exercising control over the environment to be inherently motivating.

In the field of educational psychology, Bruner (1961) wrote about the importance of contextualizing learning — showing students the relevance and utility of skills taught in school for solving problems or accomplishing intrinsic goals in the larger world.

What is Extrinsic Motivation?

Extrinsic motivation describes behavior driven by external rewards or punishments. These consequences can be tangible, such as monetary loss or shame, or abstract, such as social respect or shame.

Extrinsic motivation is a construct that pertains whenever an activity is done in order to attain some separable outcome. Extrinsic motivation thus contrasts with intrinsic motivation, which refers to doing an activity simply for the enjoyment of the activity itself, rather than its instrumental value. Ryan and Deci (2000)

The fundamental difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is that intrinsic motivation comes from within, while extrinsic motivation comes from the outside.

However, the two are not mutually exclusive — for instance, someone working on completing a project may be extrinsically motivated to finish to meet a teammate’s deadline but intrinsically motivated because they enjoy the project and want to produce high-quality work (Sennett, 2021).

Therefore, our motivations are often a mix of both intrinsic and extrinsic factors.

Researchers have suggested the importance of high initial interest in deliberately selecting activities that are of high intrinsic interest.

While expected tangible rewards can undermine interest in activities of high initial interest, they can enhance interest in tasks originally of little initial interest (Calder & Staw, 1975; Danner & Lonky, 1981; Loveland and Olley, 1979; Sansone & Harackiewicz, 2000).

Types of Extrinsic Motivation

• Reward-Based Motivation : reward-based motivation describes motivation resulting from external rewards, tangible or abstract. For example, an employee may be motivated to meet a sales target because of the promise of a bonus.
• Power-Based Motivation : power-based motivation is a form of extrinsic motivation reliant upon the desire to exert control over others. For example, a leader may be motivated to lead and inspire people to overcome challenges.
• Fear-Based Motivation : Finally, fear-based motivation describes the desire to avoid an extrinsically negative result. For example, a manager may threaten to fine those who are late to work, or a student may study for a test out of fear of a bad grade.

When to Use Extrinsic Motivation

Intrinsically motivated behaviors are performed because of the sense of personal satisfaction that they bring, while extrinsically motivated behaviors are performed in order to receive something from others.

Sansone and Harackiewicz suggest that there are three variables that can affect the effect of rewards on later motivation (2000):

Perceptions of Continued Instrumental Value

Receiving extrinsic rewards can convey information about the likelihood of further tangible or socially extrinsic rewards in future related situations. Those who receive a tangible reward for a particular activity or accomplishment in one setting may expect a similar reward for a similar activity or accomplishment in the future.

Receiving a reward, regardless of whether or not it is available in the future, can convey that an individual, group, or institution would be pleased by and is likely to approve of one’s engagement in similar tasks in the future.

The promise of continued extrinsic tangible or social rewards can motivate one to engage in a previously rewarded activity, regardless of whether it was of initial intrinsic interest to the person (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

Perceptions of Personal Competence  

Extrinsic rewards can also communicate information about competence, and receiving a reward can enhance someone’s perceptions of competence. Thus, increasing someone’s perceived competence can lead to increases in intrinsic motivation (Sansone, 1986).

These perceptions are more likely if rewards are based on performance rather than merely engagement or completion (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

Perceptions of External Control

extrinsic rewards can also convey information about someone’s level of personal control or autonomy. Receiving extrinsic rewards can decrease perceptions of autonomy and, thus, subsequent intrinsic motivation.

Subsequently, people may be less likely to engage in similar tasks when they do not expect tangible or social extrinsic rewards (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

Empirical Research

Psychologists have posited two types of motivation theories: dualistic and multifaceted. While dualistic theories divide motivation into two types, intrinsic and extrinsic, multifaceted theories recognize a number of genetically distinct motives, such as hunger, curiosity, positive self-regard, fear, sex, and power (Reiss, 2004).

For the first half of the 20th century, psychologists focused primarily on instrumental learning and extrinsic motivation. Typically, psychologists who conducted such studies attempted to link the receipt of an arbitrary reinforcer to the performance of an arbitrary response.

For example, Thorndike’s early studies of problem-solving in cats (2017) and Skinner’s work on elementary learning in rats and pigeons (2019) involved rats, cats, or pigeons being taught to press a bar, nudge a panel, or peck keys in order to obtain food, water, or relief from pain.

These researchers were able to teach animals to perform complex sequences of actions (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

However, in the latter half of the 20th century, psychologists posited a number of challenges to this model of extrinsic motivation.

Particularly, theorists sought to champion forms of “intrinsic motivation” — motivations seemingly intrinsic to many activities regardless of rewards (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

Shortly after psychologists differentiated between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, they created various hypotheses about the relationships between these two types of motivation.

Summary of Research Findings

• Noncontingent external rewards are less likely to produce detrimental effects and more likely to produce positive effects on later intrinsic motivation than rewards contingent on task engagement, completion, or performance.
• Expectation and receipt of an extrinsic reward for engaging in an activity was sufficient to produce decreased intrinsic interest in the activity (Lepper & Greene, 1975).
• Intangible extrinsic rewards (such as verbal feedback) are less likely to produce adverse effects than tangible rewards.
• Rewards providing evidence of someone’s competence have more positive effects on intrinsic motivation than rewards that do not provide information about competence.
• Researchers have also suggested the importance of high initial interest in deliberately selecting activities that are of high intrinsic interest to participants in the original experiments; while expected tangible rewards can undermine interest in activities of high initial interest, they can enhance interest in tasks originally of little initial interest (Calder and Staw, 1975; Danner and Lonky, 1981; Loveland and Olley, 1979; Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

The effects of extrinsic rewards on children’s intrinsic motivation

In the early 1970s, three laboratories found that offering extrinsic rewards for something of intrinsic interest to someone actually undermined subsequent intrinsic interest in those activities (Deci, 1971; Kruglanski, Friedman, and Zeevi, 1971; Lepper, Greene, and Nisbett, 1973; Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

In Deci’s 1971 experiment, researchers offered undergraduate students $1 for each three-dimensional manipulative puzzle that they solved correctly.

While doing this, Deci observed the amount of time that students spent working with the same activity when the experimenter left the laboratory, meaning that there was no longer a monetary reward for completing the activity.

While students who did not receive payment dependent upon whether or not they solved the puzzles continued to work on the same puzzles after the researchers left, students in the extrinsic incentive condition spent less time with the puzzles, as they no longer held an incentive value.

According to Deci and Ryan’s (1985) self-determination theory, extrinsic incentives can undermine intrinsic interest. For example, consider a boy who loves to play football for the sake of playing football who is then offered money for winning.

According to self-determination theory, extrinsic incentives — such as money and winning — undermine the boy’s intrinsic enjoyment of football. In the future, according to this theory, the boy will be less likely to play football in the absence of an extrinsic reward (Reiss, 2012).

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation as distinct constructs

Generally, early experimental research suggests that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are opposed (Deci, 1971; Kruglanski, Friedman, and Zeevi, 1971; Lepper, Greene, and Nissbett, 1973).

Deci (1971) examined the effect of verbal rewards for performance on the puzzle task. After solving the puzzle task, researchers gave students the feedback that their time to the solution was “much better than average” than their peers.

The receipt of these verbal rewards increased later intrinsic motivation (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000). Another study supporting that extrinsic and intrinsic motivation are opposed was conducted by Kruglanski et al. (1971), who offered half of a sample of Israeli high school students an extrinsic incentive for participating in a series of experiments in the laboratory.

Those given an extrinsic incentive for participating in the tasks described themselves as less interested in the activities, and their performance on the tasks themselves suffered.

For example, they showed less creativity in listing unusual uses for everyday objects, lower recall of the activities they had just undertaken, and were less likely to show significant Zeigarnik effects (a higher recall of uncompleted or interrupted tasks) (Sansone and Harackiewicz 2000).

The last of the initial experiments to show extrinsic and intrinsic motivation’s opposition was conducted by Lepper et al. (1973). In these experiments, Lepper et al. selected children on the basis of their high levels of intrinsic interest in drawing pictures with markers in preschool classrooms.

The researchers then asked the children to do the same activity under one of three conditions: the expected award condition, where children were shown a reward and asked if they would like to work on the activity in order to win one of the rewards; the unexpected-award condition, where children received the reward and feedback at the end of the session; and the no-award condition, where children received verbal feedback but no tangible reward.

Again, upon observing the children later, the researchers found that only those in the expected-reward condition lost interest in drawing with the markers (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000). These findings shaped Deci and Ryan’s (1985) self-determination theory .

Despite an early line of research arguing that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are mutually exclusive, more recent findings, such as those of Lepper et al. (1997), have found that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are not necessarily in negative correlation with each other.

For example, Lepper et al. ‘s studies of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation in students found that there was a significant positive correlation between curiosity and interest (intrinsic motivators) and attempting to please the teacher or receive a good grade (extrinsic motivators).

This persisted when the studies were replicated in larger populations of students (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000).

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation as a continuum

Ryan and Deci (2000) stressed the notion that extrinsic and intrinsic motivators can combine in the self-determination continuum.

According to the self-determination continuum, people can be motivated — where their psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness are not met, intrinsically motivated (where all of these needs are met), or somewhere in between.

Ryan and Deci describe the last case as extrinsic motivation in the form of external regulation, introjected regulation, identified regulation, or integrated regulation (2000).

How Do Intrinsic Motivation and Extrinsic Motivation Influence Learning?

Western thinkers ranging from Willliam Blake to Charles Dickens and Mark Twain have traditionally portrayed schools as a source of drudgery, ennui, and misery (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000), and educational scholars have acknowledged the lack of motivation students seemingly display in American classrooms (e.g., Bruner, 1962; Silberman, 1970).

In the face of the poor performance of American students in cross-national comparisons of academic accomplishment (e.g., Stevenson, Chen, and Lee, 1993; Stevenson and Stigler, 1994), developmental decrease in motivation in American schools had been of theoretical interest.

One set of explanations for the decline in children’s intrinsic motivation is the role of social control in the American classroom (Winnett and Winkler, 1971).

Some authors have noted that social control can increase as children progress through school (Condry, 1978). In particular, Eccles et al. note that as early adolescents develop a thirst for increased autonomy and personal growth, schools seem to increase their focus on discipline, provide fewer opportunities for decision-making, and assign less cognitively challenging coursework (1993).

In educational settings, students are more likely to experience intrinsic motivation to learn when they feel a sense of belonging and respect in the classroom. This internalization can be enhanced if the evaluative aspects of the classroom are de-emphasized and if students feel that they exercise some control over the learning environment.

Furthermore, providing students with activities that are challenging yet doable, along with a rationale for engaging in various learning activities, can enhance intrinsic motivation for those tasks (Niemiec & Ryan, 2009).

Berlyn, S. (1960). Counselor or Clerk? The School Counselor, 7 (4), 84-86.

Bruner, J. S. (1961). The act of discovery . Harvard educational review.

Bruner, J. S. (1962). The conditions of creativity. Paper presented at the Contemporary Approaches to Creative Thinking, 1958, University of Colorado, CO, US; This paper was presented at the aforementioned symposium.

Calder, B. J., & Staw, B. M. (1975). Self-perception of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 31 (4), 599.

Condry, J. (1978). The role of incentives in socialization. The hidden costs of reward: new perspectives on the psychology of human motivation, 179-192.

Condry, J., & Chambers, J. (1978). Intrinsic motivation and the process of learning. The hidden costs of reward , 61-84.

Cordova, D. I., & Lepper, M. R. (1996). Intrinsic motivation and the process of learning: Beneficial effects of contextualization, personalization, and choice. Journal of Educational Psychology, 88 (4), 715.

Danner, F. W., & Lonky, E. (1981). A cognitive-developmental approach to the effects of rewards on intrinsic motivation. Child Development, 1043-1052.

Deci, E. L. (1971). Effects of externally mediated rewards on intrinsic motivation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 18 (1), 105.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). The general causality orientations scale: Self-determination in personality. Journal of Research in Personality, 19 (2), 109-134.

Eccles, J., Wigfield, A., Harold, R. D., & Blumenfeld, P. (1993). Age and gender differences in children’s self‐and task perceptions during elementary school. Child development, 64(3), 830-847.

Hunt, J. M. (1961). Intelligence and experience.

Kruglanski, A. W., Friedman, I., & Zeevi, G. (1971). The effects of extrinsic incentive on some qualitative aspects of task performance 1. Journal of Personality, 39 (4), 606-617.

Lepper, M. R., Greene, D., & Nisbett, R. E. (1973). Undermining children’s intrinsic interest with extrinsic reward: A test of the” overjustification” hypothesis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 28 (1), 129.

Loveland, K. K., & Olley, J. G. (1979). The effect of external reward on interest and quality of task performance in children of high and low intrinsic motivation. Child Development , 1207-1210.

Mitchell, S. E. (2013). Self-determination theory and Oklahoma equestrians: A motivation study : Oklahoma State University.

Niemiec, C. P., & Ryan, R. M. (2009). Autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the classroom: Applying self-determination theory to educational practice. Theory and research in Education, 7 (2), 133-144.

Oudeyer, P.-Y., & Kaplan, F. (2009). What is intrinsic motivation? A typology of computational approaches. Frontiers in Neurorobotics, 1 , 6.

Reiss, S. (2004). Multifaceted nature of intrinsic motivation: The theory of 16 basic desires. Review of General Psychology, 8 (3), 179-193.

Reiss, S. (2012). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Teaching of Psychology, 39( 2), 152-156.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25 (1), 54-67.

Sansone, C., & Harackiewicz, J. M. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation: The search for optimal motivation and performance : Elsevier. Sennett, P. (2021). Understanding intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

Silberman, C. E. (1970). Crisis in the classroom: The remaking of American education.

Skinner, B. F. (2019). The behavior of organisms: An experimental analysis: BF Skinner Foundation.

Stevenson, H., & Stigler, J. W. (1994). Learning gap: Why our schools are failing and what we can learn from Japanese and Chinese educ: Simon and Schuster.

Stevenson, H. W., Chen, C., & Lee, S.-Y. (1993). Mathematics achievement of Chinese, Japanese, and American children: Ten years later. Science, 53-58.

Thorndike, L., & Bruce, D. (2017). Animal intelligence: Experimental studies: Routledge.

White, R. W. (1959). Motivation reconsidered: the concept of competence. Psychological Review, 66 (5), 297.

Winett, R. A., & Winkler, R. C. (1972). Current behavior modification in the classroom: Be still, be quiet, be docile. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 5 (4), 499-504.

Further Reading

Herzberg’s Motivation Theory (Two-Factor Theory)

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary educational psychology, 25(1), 54-67.

Niemiec, C. P., & Ryan, R. M. (2009). Autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the classroom: Applying self-determination theory to educational practice. Theory and research in Education, 7(2), 133-144.

Oudeyer, P. Y., & Kaplan, F. (2009). What is intrinsic motivation? A typology of computational approaches. Frontiers in neurorobotics, 1, 6.

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A Blend of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Essay (Critical Writing)

Drive reduction, intrinsic-extrinsic motivation, maslow’s hierarchy.

I am thrilled to share that I recently achieved a networking goal that I set for myself. Specifically, I was able to connect with some significant individuals within the field of sociology, which is an area of interest for me both academically and personally. Building a network of professional relationships has always been something I have been passionate about, as I believe it can be incredibly beneficial for career growth and personal development.

Drive reduction theory suggests that human behavior is motivated by the desire to reduce physiological needs or drives, such as hunger, thirst, or the need for social connection. In the context of achieving a networking goal, one could argue that the motivation behind this achievement was to reduce the need for professional connections and social validation (Feldman, 2021). In other words, by making meaningful connections within the field of sociology, the individual was able to satisfy their need for social connection and recognition.

Intrinsic motivation is the drive to engage in an activity simply because it is enjoyable or exciting. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation refers to the drive to engage in an activity because of external rewards or pressures (Feldman, 2021). In terms of achieving a networking goal, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation may have played a role. For example, individuals may have been intrinsically motivated to build relationships within sociology because they find the subject fascinating.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a theory that suggests that human needs can be organized into five categories, ranging from basic physiological needs to self-actualization. In terms of achieving a networking goal, one could argue that this achievement satisfies needs at multiple levels of Maslow’s hierarchy (Feldman, 2021). For example, making meaningful connections within the field of sociology may satisfy the need for social connection, belongingness, and love needs.

As someone who recently achieved a networking goal by connecting with influential people in sociology, I believe the theory of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation best accounts for my achievement. While I was undoubtedly motivated by external factors, such as the potential career benefits that could come from making these connections, I was also intrinsically motivated by my love for the subject matter. Sociology has always been an area of interest for me, and I genuinely enjoy learning about the complexities of human social behavior.

Feldman, R. S. (2021). Essentials of understanding psychology: Motivation and emotion (4 e.d.). McGraw-Hill Education.

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IvyPanda. (2024, March 1). A Blend of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation. https://ivypanda.com/essays/a-blend-of-intrinsic-and-extrinsic-motivation/

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Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Essay: Comparing Types of Motivation

Are you looking for inspiration for your intrinsic and extrinsic motivation essay? This sample paper will be of great help to you! It will define both types based on theory, provide some examples of how they work, and compare and contrast extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. Read on to gain new insights!

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Essay: Abstract

Extrinsic and intrinsic motivation essay: introduction, what is the definition of extrinsic motivation, what is the best definition of intrinsic motivation, what’s the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, conclusion of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation essay.

Motivation helps to achieve particular motives. Behavior in every individual has some force that pushes it. For people to do specific things now and again, they must have some driving force. Motivation is like the carrot that makes the donkey keep moving in the direction that it hangs. Intrinsic motivation is the internal drive in a person to take up tasks because of internal satisfaction. One does not need rewards for that which he or she enjoys doing willingly. Extrinsic motivation comes as a result of external rewards.

It helps an individual to take up given activities because of the reward that awaits the completion of such duties. Sometimes the reward is only for the best performers. The difference in these rewards is that one gets the internal drive while the other is as a result of external promises, praises, or rewards. Both of them are important in different ways. The natural person does not necessarily need external rewards to fulfill individual goals. However, external praises and rewards can increase performance. However, sometimes the rewards may decrease intrinsic motivation.

Keywords : Motivation, intrinsic, extrinsic, task

Motivation is a theory that explains the behavior of people. The theory seeks to give reasons for people’s actions, desires, and needs. It helps to understand the behavior and the reasons that cause such actions.

It is the performance of particular measures to gain a desired goal or reward. It involves the intentions and ideas for achieving given goals. Competition is an extrinsic motivation that encourages the performer to do the best to beat his or her competitors (Armin, 2010). When people are cheering on and the availability of a trophy both work to enhance the morale of a person to keep on the track (Reiss, 2012).

It is the self-desire to seek out new things and build one’s capacity for the tasks ahead. One enjoys the works, and in the process, he or she achieves the desired target. Intrinsic motivation mainly shapes a person’s behavior from within and continuously leads him or her to obtain personal goals (Lunnan, 2015).

The primary difference between the two is that intrinsic motivation comes from within an individual while extrinsic motivation arises from without the person. They can also differ in the way they drive behavior. When there is a constant reward for external behavior for an already intrinsic person reduces internal motivation. The overjustification effect is the resulting force.

External motivation can assist the individual gain interest in the things that he or she had no initial interest. It can also help a person learn unique skills that could become beneficial in the long run. Once a person acquires new competencies in this way, he or she may become internally motivated in the field (Joy Kistnasamy, 2014). He or she may not want rewards to take action.

External motivation can also be a source of feedback. It may help people to know if and when they have reached particular achievements and if there is the need for reinforcement. However, there should be no extrinsic rewards for individuals who already intrinsically rewarded by the action. Rewards can turn the enjoyment into work that needs payment.

Despite the argument that intrinsic motivation is good, not all people can get internal motivation in certain activities (Lens, Paixão, & Herrera, 2009). Excess rewards may also be dangerous to a person. The person may only do certain activities because of the reward in it, and when there is none, the person fails to achieve the targets. External rewards may not lead to intrinsic motivation.

Sometimes the external rewards are unexpected and so they do not affect a person’s intrinsic motivation. Sometimes the extrinsic motivation can only be a word of exultation or praise. Such encouragements may lead to internal motivation to beat certain deadlines or achieve given goals (Orosz, Farkas, & Roland-Lévy, 2013). Therefore, it increases internal motivation. Praise may also decrease the intrinsic motivation when it satisfies only simple tasks. For instance, when praise for a child’s performance of simple tasks increases; it may only reduce the internal motivation.

Sometimes huge rewards may diminish the intrinsically motivated person’s motive to do better in any undertaking. Otherwise, it can make people also feel more competent in some areas. Rewards can also act as the bribe to increase the speed of work (Joy Kistnasamy, 2014).

Both intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation are critical for the success of people and organizations. For one to understand how motivation drives behavior, it is essential to understand their differences. Sometimes they support each other, and at other times they differ in principle.

Armin, F. (2010). Neural correlates of the influence of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. Frontiers in Neuroscience , 4 (1), 23-45.

Joy Kistnasamy, E. (2014). The power of extrinsic motivation in tertiary education. EDUCATION , 2 (6), 383-388.

Lens, W., Paixão, M., & Herrera, D.(2009). Instrumental motivation is extrinsic motivation: so what???. Psychologica , (50), 21-40.

Lunnan Hjort, J. (2015). Intrinsic and extrinsic work motivation among US and Norwegian high school students. Young , 23 (4), 293-312.

Orosz, G., Farkas, D., & Roland-Lévy, C. (2013). Are competition and extrinsic motivation reliable predictors of academic cheating?. Frontiers in Psychology , 4 (2), 25-45.

Reiss, S. (2012). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. teaching of psychology , 39 (2), 152-156.

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Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation (Complete Guide)

“To be motivated means to be moved to do something.” (Ryan & Deci, 2000, p. 54)

This post provides 18+ examples of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation in the classroom.

Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation Theory:

• Extrinsic Motivation: A person with extrinsic motivation wants to do a task in order to receive a reward or avoid a punishment.
• Intrinsic Motivation: A person with intrinsic motivation wants to do a task for the pleasure involved in doing the task itself.

Part 1 contains extrinsic motivation examples in the classroom; Part 2 contains intrinsic motivation examples in the classroom.

Read Also: A List of 107 Effective Classroom Teaching Strategies

* The cartoon in this infographic uses a GaphicMama License for reproduction. The original graphic is available to view here: Mr Geekson Set .

Extrinsic Motivation an d Intrinsic Motivation

Extrinsic motivation examples.

Some examples of extrinsic motivation include:

1. Token Reward Systems

In Harry Potter, students have house points. There are four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each student is sorted into a house on their first day at Hogwarts.

For the rest of the series, Harry and his friends want to win points for Gryffindor: their house!

These points are an extrinsic motivator. The house point system is designed to give a student an incentive to do something well. Do a good job, and you will earn points which may – if you collect more of them than your opponents – win the prize at the end of the year!

In classrooms in the earlier years of schooling, reward systems are often used based on table groups. Let’s say a class is split up into tables like in the below image:

Each table might get given a name. Then, the teacher can give and take points from the table to encourage the students on each table to compete against each other to become the best.

2. Classroom Sticker / Star Charts

Another good external motivator is a star chart. Star charts are really common in early years classrooms as motivators.

Young kids love stickers!

Buy a sticker chart from Teachers Pay Teachers or make one yourself! Here’s two common ways they’re done:

• If you’ve got one personal chart per student, list the weekly or daily tasks down the left-hand side. Once the child has completed the task, they can put a sticker alongside the task name.
• If you’ve got one chart for the whole class , list all the students’ names down the left-hand side and let the students race to have the most stickers in the class.

Heck, why not? Food is a great motivator for students.

In fact, I recommend to my college students that they use food to motivate themselves while studying .

If you’re an educator, you’ll need to be careful not to use unhealthy foods or foods that children are allergic to.

I used to offer small treats in my classrooms before I got more conscious of healthy diets for children. I also realized that some parents might not have been very happy if they knew I was handing out candies in class!

But, for you or for your children, feel free to have a go at using food as a motivator – just please do it in moderation!

If you want to know about other motivators for studying as a college student, you might want to check out this post I have on how to make studying fun.

4. Guilt Trips

Heck, being guilted into doing things was my modus operandi as a kid!

Guilt trips are a form of ‘negative reinforcement’ (a reminder that if you fail, you’ll lose something you like).

I wasn’t going to get anything tangible out of being good as a kid. No one was going to give me a candy or a toy.

I was just really scared of having my parents change their opinions of me.

I see this guilt trip reinforcement in ‘good kids’ at school all the time. Children see themselves as ‘good kids’ and don’t want to lose that. So, they do things they don’t want to do in order to keep up a reputation they have with their teacher.

This isn’t an intrinsic motivator because students aren’t necessarily doing things out of the pleasure of the task. They’re doing something they don’t want in order to get something out of it – in this case, a reputation of being ‘good’.

5. Game-Based Learning Rewards

Educational computer games are well-known for being based upon extrinsic motivators. When students finish a level they win tokens, points or ‘level ups’ for completing their tasks.

Examples of this are in educational games like DuoLingo (a language learning app) and Kahn Academy (mostly for mathematics learning).

In DuoLingo, you can level up towards a ‘Fluency Level’ in your language. In Kahn Academy, virtual stickers are used to reward your avatar.

Another way educational computer games reward students is through sound and graphics:

• Loud sounds when a student wins an activity stimulate the learner and make them want to try again to get the same stimulation once again. This is a lot like how a gambling machine in a casino gets you coming back for more!
• Bright flashing lights that attract learners’ attention can also be used to get learners addicted to the thrill of winning.

These are still extrinsic motivators because students are playing the games to achieve the extraneous stimulation of gameplay, not for the fun of the activities themselves.

6. The Premack Principle

The Premack Principle argues that people will do an activity they don’t want to do if they are bribed with a more desirable activity that follows.

The Premack Principle is often known as grandma’s rule :

“Eat your vegetables and then you can have your dessert.”

In the classroom, teachers often bribe students with a fun activity as the last activity at the end of the day or week. If students do all of their work well throughout the day (without misbehaving!) they might get to play a game of their choice.

(I also discuss the Premack Principle in this article  on staying awake while studying and this article on focusing while studying).

Praise is simple, but it works. Really well.

Students often crave your praise and will work on a task they aren’t necessarily all that interested in if they think they will get some praise from it.

However, teachers should also think about what is actually praiseworthy.

Here are some forms of praise that could be demotivating:

• Praising too much. If you praise too much , then the praise will lose all its meaning and students will stop seeing your praise as all that motivating.
• Disproportionate Praise. If you praise one child more than others, the other children will stop seeing your praise as genuine. Often we have children who misbehave regularly and we end up lowering our standards for them. We find ourselves praising them for tasks that should be expected! Instead, go with a simple ‘thank you’ for tasks that are expected.

Here are some forms of praise to consider:

• A smile and nod. Sometimes simple is best. Your student will be made to feel like you’ve given them a special little bit of recognition without being insincere or over-the-top about it.
• Proportionate praise. Make sure your students know that high praise is hard to come by, but use it when something is genuinely praiseworthy. If a student amazes you, consider calling a student’s parents and let them know how well they did.

8. Threats of Physical Punishment

No, I’m not advocating physical punishment.

In fact, in most western countries physical or ‘corporal’ punishment is very much illegal in schools.

But nonetheless, it’s an example of an extrinsic motivator. If a child knows or believes they will receive physical punishment for doing something wrong (or getting a low mark on an exam) they might work extra hard to succeed!

Harsh punishments may cause emotional, physical and psychological harm. So, I don’t advocate it!

9. Threats to Remove Privileges

Here are some common sorts of privileges teachers give to students at schools:

• Being allowed to do tasks only assigned to trustworthy students, such as handing out worksheets or being sent to another classroom to send a message;
• Being allowed to go on an end of year excursion;
• Getting to use certain toys, play equipment or access to play areas.

Students who feel that they will have privileges removed if they do not complete a task, they may feel increased motivation to complete the task.

10. Whole Group Accountability

This is another one that works really well – but again, it needs to be done appropriately.

Here’s some times I feel this strategy works well:

• When students need to work as a team in order to complete a task;
• When interdependence and groupwork are clear aspects of the learning scenario;
• When the reward is not of significant consequence.

Here’s some times the strategy causes resentment between students:

• When one misbehaving student holds the whole class back , even though the rest of the students did nothing wrong;
• When students genuinely tried their hardest but feel they’ve been punished for no reason.

Nonetheless, this can be a good way of getting the students to self-regulate as a group and apply peer pressure on each other to do well.

Use this strategy with care!

Related Motivation Theories:

• A to Z List of Motivation Theories
• Expectancy-Value Theory
• Self-Determination Theory
• Behaviorism in Education
• Keller’s ARCS Model of Motivation
• The ABC Model of Attitude

Intrinsic Motivation Examples

Some examples of intrinsic motivation include:

1. Student-Led Inquiry Learning

Inquiry learning based on students’ personal interests can really liven up a classroom.

This is because students get the opportunity to explore topics that they’re genuinely interested in and excited about.

If you’ve got to stick to a curriculum, you might still be able to embrace student-led aspects by finding ways to link curriculum outcomes to students’ interests.

This approach requires teachers to know their students well and reflect on how they can cater their curriculum to the interests of students.

Start by asking your students what they want to learn about or what their passions are, then brainstorm ways to weave this into your curriculum.

2. Sparking Inspiration

Being inspired is one of the greatest motivators out there. And, the best thing is, it comes from within. You don’t need any rewards or punishments to inspire students. In fact, you need to take a completely different approach.

To inspire students about the content, you need to find ways to show how what the students are learning about is amazing , revolutionary or life-changing .

Inspired students see potential in educational topics.

Don’t underestimate how much young people are inspired by altruistic endeavors. Issues that inspire many young people around the world include climate change and environmental stewardship.

3. Promoting Task Satisfaction

One of the three types of extrinsic motivation that I outline later in this piece is motivation towards accomplishment . By this, we mean that people can have positive sensations when they feel like they completed a difficult task well.

To make a task satisfying, make sure that it’s not too easy and not too hard.

A great way to hit that sweet spot of making a task satisfying is to use Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development.

According to Vygotsky, teachers should assess a student’s prior knowledge and develop a lesson that builds on the prior knowledge.

If the lesson teaches things the student already knows, they will be bored and unmotivated. But if the content is too hard, they’ll also be bored and unmotivated!

To solve this problem, Vygotsky proposes you should teach content that is too hard for a student to do alone, but easy enough for them to do with assistance:

4. Sparking Curiosity

We can’t always teach something that’s a student’s favorite subject. Sometimes content is a little bland or boring.

So, how do we instil intrinsic motivation in students when teaching this sort of content?

I recommend trying to spark a sense of curiosity in the students. Sometimes all you need is an engaging ‘hook’ to get students paying attention and genuinely interested in doing the task.

One way you could do this is to turn a lesson into a detective scenario. Provide clues and ask the students to seek their own answers.

Another way is to find some really interesting or catchy information about a topic. For example, if you’re teaching about spiders, you could find a really interesting fact about spiders’ legs or how many eyes they have. This might spark some curiosity in students.

A lot of these curiosity-sparking strategies are the sorts of strategies you might also use in the introduction to an essay to get a reader interested and wanting to read more.

5. Feeling Good after Practicing a Skill

Sometimes, it just feels good to practice.

I notice this most in my students who love mathematics. They’ll sit down and do some quizzes just because it feels great to flex those mathematical muscles!

Sometimes learning is like going to the gym. If you haven’t done it in a while, you’re not going to have fun. It will hurt, you’ll feel bad about yourself, and you might not go back for a while.

But once you’re on a role and doing it on a regular basic it starts feeling great.

Consider getting your students to do some mathematical exercises early every morning to get their minds running and get them in the process of practicing learning. Hopefully after time when they get on a roll, they’ll start feeling good about it!

6. Enjoying the Process of Learning

Some students just love learning – it’s that simple! It doesn’t matter what you give them to do, they’ll tackle the task with enthusiasm!

I think one of the most obvious examples of this is people who love to read self-help books (or listen to self-help podcasts!). These sorts of people just can’t get enough of information that will make them a little smarter or help them learn a few more tricks.

Trying to instil a love of learning in students is difficulty. Try to act as a role model, explain how learning has great benefits for you as a person, and show how your knowledge makes you a more interesting person to be around! Hopefully that will rub off on students and they’ll give learning a chance.

Another way to try to instil a love of learning is to help students get a few wins under their belt. Work with them to overcome intellectual challenges and celebrate with them when they achieve their learning goals. These wins will give students first-hand knowledge of the sense of accomplishment that comes from learning something new.

7. Enjoying working in Groups

Some of us hate group work . Some of us love it.

But working in groups can be a really intrinsically fulfilling way to learn. Social interaction is something most humans crave, making it an intrinsic reward in and of itself . It gives us benefits like:

• An overall more positive outlook on life;
• A sharper mind from being challenged by peers; and
• A sense of belonging and community.

So, working in groups can be a great way to turn a difficult or bland task into one that is enjoyable to complete. The sense of community while completing the task can buoy us.

As Nick Morgan says on his Forbes article says:

“We want to achieve this state of human communion (…) We are most comfortable when we’re connected (and) sharing strong emotions and stories”

8. Wanting to beat your Personal Best

A desire for self-betterment comes from within. Sometimes it hasn’t got to do with wanting to be smart for when you talk to someone you have a crush on, or so you can get a job in the future.

Some of us just want to be our very best. In the humanist theory of learning, Maslow calls this the desire for self-actualization (see: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs ).

Students who want to better themselves have an intrinsic desire to learn.

This is another example of ‘intrinsic motivation towards accomplishment’, which is one of the three types of intrinsic motivation I discuss later in this article.

Definition of Extrinsic Motivation

Simple Definition

An external motivator is a carrot or stick that entices us to do something that we otherwise would not.

Scholarly Definition

Here are some scholarly definitions you can quote in an essay:

• The biggest names in motivation theories of the past few decades are Ryan and Deci (2000) . They define extrinsic motivation as “doing something because it leads to a separable outcome” (p. 55).
• “Extrinsic motivation (EM) refers to performance of behavior that is fundamentally contingent upon the attainment of an outcome that is separable from the action itself … It is performed in order to attain some other outcome. For instance, a teenager might wash dishes at home in order to receive an allowance.” (Legault, 2016, p. 1)
• “Extrinsic motivation comes from external sources and is mostly driven or forced by environmental contingencies such as money, good grades, or the approval of others.” (Sogunro, 2015, p. 23)

Simple Explanation

‘Extrinsic’ has the same origins as the word ‘external’. Extrinsic motivators are therefore things that are external to ourselves that motivate us. Our extrinsic motivation doesn’t come from inside of us. Rather, the motivation is based on an outsider providing an external stimulus.

An external stimulus could be one of the following:

• Positive Reinforcement : We do a task in order to get a reward. An example might be getting a chocolate for completing a task.
• Punishment: We do a task in order to avoid being given a punishment. A punishment might be being forced to do extra homework if we don’t complete the task.
• Negative Reinforcement: We do a task in order to avoid losing something we already have. This is a form of punishment, but instead of being given a punishment such as additional homework, a privilege is taken from us . An example is losing play time during lunch break.

Pros and Cons

Some of the benefits of extrinsic motivation are:

• Students find encouragement to complete tasks that are uninteresting yet necessary;
• Tasks can be split into regular, manageable intervals with rewards provided intermittently throughout the process;
• Can be very effective, especially for students with autism via the Applied Behaviour Management strategy of teaching;
• It is a transactional way to motivate people, where there is no pretence about trying to make an uninteresting task appear interesting.

Some of the limitations of extrinsic motivation are:

• Rewards lose their effect over time, leading to decreased return on a teacher’s effort;
• Rewards vary depending upon student. Teachers need to know their students well to cater rewards effectively;
• Many forms of punishment are considered unethical these days. Be very careful with using punishments in classroom environments;
• Students are unlikely to remember school fondly when they are not encouraged to love learning for its own sake.

Theoretical Origins

Extrinsic motivations are embraced in behaviorist theory . Behaviorist theorists like B. F. Skinner believe that you can teach a child anything if you give them strong enough incentives and disincentives (Buckley & Doyle, 2016) .

Behaviorist theorists don’t take into account the depth of our emotions, cultural origins, cognitive factors or social factors that might motivate us. They simply think that learning occurs through reward and punishment.

Definition of Intrinsic Motivation

An intrinsic motivator is something you do because you enjoy doing it.

• I told you earlier that Ryan and Deci (2000) are the biggest names in motivation theory. They define intrinsic motivation as “doing something because it is inherently interesting or enjoyable” (p. 55). “Intrinsic motivation (IM) refers to engagement in behavior that is inherently satisfying or enjoyable … the means and end are one and the same. For example, a child may play outdoors – running, skipping, jumping – for no other reason than because it is fun and innately satisfying.” (Legault, 2016, p. 1)
• “Intrinsic motivation involves learners being interested in what they learn and in the learning process itself” (Buckley & Doyle, 2016, p. 1165)

Intrinsic’ has the same origins as the word ‘internal’, or ‘ internal stimulus ‘. When we have intrinsic motivation, our motivation comes from inside of us. We don’t need someone providing the promise of reward or punishment for us to want to do something.

There are three main forms of intrinsic motivation:

• Intrinsic motivation to know: The idea that people experience positive sensations (enjoyment, pleasure, etc.) in learning new things.
• Intrinsic motivation towards accomplishment: The idea that people experience positive sensations (enjoyment, pleasure, etc.) when they have achieved something.
• Intrinsic motivation to experience stimulation: The idea that people experience positive sensations (enjoyment, pleasure, etc.) when they do tasks that are cognitively, physically, socially or emotionally stimulating.

If you want to know more about these three forms of motivation, see Vallerand et al. (1992) or Buckley and Doyle (2016).

Pros and Cons of Intrinsic Motivation

Some of the benefits of intrinsic motivation are:

• Students will come into the classroom excited for the day of learning;
• School will appear exciting and engaging for students;
• Students will do the task without fuss and without misbehaving;

Some of the limitations of intrinsic motivation are:

• Some activities are just plainly boring but need to be learned. You’ll need to find alternative ways to motivate students to learn this content;
• Things we are interested in are not necessarily the most valuable things to learn about;
• Most schools have a standardized curriculum which limits our freedom to learn what we are intrinsically motivated about.

Intrinsic motivation is explained within cognitive psychology as a desire to find balance in your mind. When you don’t understand something you feel like something isn’t right. We humans seem driven to eliminate this incongruity so everything makes clearer sense in your mind (Buckley & Doyle, 2016).

Academic Sources to Cite in your Essay (APA Style)

You should always cite scholarly sources when writing essays. Here’s how to find scholarly sources and the best types of scholarly sources to use.

These are some good scholarly sources to cite in an essay on motivation:

Buckley, P. & Doyle, E. (2016). Gamification and student motivation. Interactive Learning Environments , 24 (6), 1162-1175. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2014.964263

Deckers, L. (2005). Motivation: Biological, psychological, and environmental (2nd ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Legault, L. (2016). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. In Zeigler-Hill, V. & Shackelford, T. K. (Eds.)  Encyclopedia of personality and individual differences (pp. 1–4). Switzerland: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1139-1

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 54–67. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1020

Sogunro, O. A. (2015). Motivating factors for adult learners in higher education.  International Journal of Higher Education ,  4 (1), 22-37. http://dx.doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v4n1p22

Vallerand, R. J., Pelletier, L. G., Blais, M. R., Briere, N. M., Senecal, C., & Vallieres, E. F. (1992). The academic motivation scale: A measure of intrinsic, extrinsic, and amotivation in education. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 52(4), 1003–1017. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0013164492052004025

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 17 Behaviorism Examples
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• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 15 Animism Examples
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Intrinsic Motivation vs. Extrinsic Motivation: What's the Difference?

Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Verywell / Joshua Seong

What Are Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation?

• Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation refer to the forces that drive behavior. Internal motivation arises from within, while external motivation comes from outside forces.

That means that if you are intrinsically motivated, you'll engage in a behavior because you enjoy doing it. If you are extrinsically motivated, you'll do it to get a reward .

Researchers have found that each type has a different effect on a person's behavior and pursuit of goals. To better understand the influence of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on human behavior, it will help to learn how each type works.

At a Glance

Why do we do the things we do? What drives our behavior? Psychologists have proposed different ways of thinking about motivation, including looking at whether motivation arises from outside (extrinsic) or inside (intrinsic) an individual. Intrinsic motivation comes from within, and extrinsic motivation from without.

Sometimes you're better off doing things for enjoyment, but in other cases, you might need a little extra outside motivation. However, it pays to be careful since excessive external rewards can sometimes dampen intrinsic motivation.

Is It Extrinsic or Intrinsic Motivation?

Intrinsic motivation is when you engage in a behavior because you find it rewarding. You are performing an activity for its own sake rather than from the desire for some external reward. The behavior itself is its own reward.

Extrinsic motivation is when we are motivated to perform a behavior or engage in an activity because we want to earn a reward or avoid punishment. You will engage in behavior not because you enjoy it or because you find it satisfying, but because you expect to get something in return or avoid something unpleasant.

Participating in a sport to win awards

Cleaning your room to avoid being reprimanded by your parents

Competing in a contest to win a scholarship

Studying because you want to get a good grade

Participating in a sport because you find the activity enjoyable

Cleaning your room because you like tidying up

Solving a word puzzle because you find the challenge fun and exciting

Studying a subject you find fascinating

Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Motivation: Which Is Best?

Extrinsic motivation arises from outside of the individual, while intrinsic motivation comes from within. Research has shown that each type has a different effect on human behavior.

Studies have demonstrated that offering excessive external rewards for an already internally rewarding behavior can reduce intrinsic motivation—a phenomenon known as the overjustification effect .

For example, in a 2008 study, children who were rewarded for playing with a toy they had already expressed interest in playing with became less interested in the item after being externally rewarded.  

This is not to suggest that extrinsic motivation is a bad thing—it can be beneficial in some situations. For example, extrinsic motivation can be particularly helpful when a person needs to complete a task that they find unpleasant.

Additionally, external rewards can:

• Be a source of feedback to let people know when their performance has achieved a standard that is deserving of reinforcement
• Induce interest and participation in an activity an individual was not initially interested in
• Motivate people to acquire new skills or knowledge (once these early skills have been learned, people might become more intrinsically motivated to pursue an activity)

Extrinsic motivators should be avoided in situations where:

• An individual already finds the activity intrinsically rewarding
• Offering a reward might make a "play" activity seem more like "work"

Motivate a person to learn something new

Make a person more interested in an activity that they are not interested in

Provide feedback to people to let them know their performance is worthy of recognition

A person is already interested in the topic, task, or activity

Offering a reward would make the activity feel like "work" instead of "play"

When to Use Extrinsic Motivation

Most people assume that intrinsic motivation is best, but it is not always possible in every situation. Sometimes a person simply has no internal desire to engage in an activity. Offering excessive rewards can be problematic as well.

However, when they are used appropriately, extrinsic motivators can be a useful tool. For example, extrinsic motivation can get people to complete a work task or school assignment that they are not interested in.

Researchers have arrived at three primary conclusions regarding extrinsic rewards and their influence on intrinsic motivation:

Rewarding Minimal Effort Reduces Intrinsic Motivation

Intrinsic motivation will decrease when external rewards are given for completing a particular task or only doing minimal work. In other words, if you get rewarded for doing very little, you aren't likely to find the activity intrinsically rewarding.

If parents heap lavish praise on their child every time they complete a simple task, the child will become less intrinsically motivated to perform that task.

Praise Can Increase Internal Motivation

Researchers have found that offering positive praise and feedback when people do something better than others can improve intrinsic motivation.

Unexpected Rewards Don't Hurt Intrinsic Motivation

Unexpected external rewards do not decrease intrinsic motivation. If you get a good grade on a test because you enjoy learning about a subject and the teacher decides to reward you with a gift card to your favorite pizza place, your underlying motivation for learning about the subject will not be affected.

However, rewarding in this situation must be done with caution because people will sometimes come to expect rewards.

How Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Impact Learning

Both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation play a significant role in learning. Experts have argued that education's traditional emphasis on external rewards (such as grades, report cards, and gold stars) undermines any existing intrinsic motivation that students might have.

Others have suggested that extrinsic motivators help students feel more competent in the classroom, which in turn enhances their intrinsic motivation.  

Experts suggest that rewards don't imperil intrinsic motivation when they are used to indicate that a person has performed well. In such cases, extrinsic rewards can help people feel proud and competent, which increases how much they enjoy the task.

When used appropriately, such rewards can help boost motivation, creativity, and performance. Consider how extrinsic rewards like promotions, scholarships, and bonuses can help students and employees feel more encouraged to perform well.

Both extrinsic motivation and intrinsic motivation drive human behavior. There are several key differences between motivation that comes from external rewards and the kind that is driven by an individual's genuine interest, including the influence of each type on a person's behavior and the situations in which each type will be most effective.

Understanding how each type of motivation works and when it is likely to be useful can help people perform tasks (even when they do not want to) and improve their learning.

Morris LS, Grehl MM, Rutter SB, Mehta M, Westwater ML. On what motivates us: a detailed review of intrinsic  v.  extrinsic motivation .  Psychol Med . 2022;52(10):1801-1816. doi:10.1017/S0033291722001611

Tranquillo J, Stecker M. Using intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in continuing professional education. Surg Neurol Int. 2016;7(Suppl 7):S197-9. doi:10.4103/2152-7806.179231

Lee W, Reeve J, Xue Y, Xiong J. Neural differences between intrinsic reasons for doing versus extrinsic reasons for doing: an fMRI study. Neurosci Res. 2012;73(1):68-72. doi:10.1016/j.neures.2012.02.010

Di domenico SI, Ryan RM. The emerging neuroscience of intrinsic motivation: A new frontier in self-determination research. Front Hum Neurosci. 2017;11:145. doi:10.3389/fnhum.2017.00145

Warneken F, Tomasello M. Extrinsic rewards undermine altruistic tendencies in 20-month-olds. Dev Psychol. 2008;44(6):1785-8. doi:10.1037/a0013860

Levy A, Deleon IG, Martinez CK, et al. A quantitative review of overjustification effects in persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities. J Appl Behav Anal. 2017;50(2):206-221. doi:10.1002/jaba.359

Henderlong J, Lepper MR. The effects of praise on children's intrinsic motivation: a review and synthesis. Psychol Bull . 2002;128(5):774-95.

Czaicki NL, Dow WH, Njau PF, Mccoy SI. Do incentives undermine intrinsic motivation? Increases in intrinsic motivation within an incentive-based intervention for people living with HIV in Tanzania. PLoS ONE . 2018;13(6):e0196616. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0196616

Oudeyer PY, Kaplan F. What is Intrinsic Motivation? A Typology of Computational Approaches. Front Neurorobot. 2007;1:6. doi:10.3389/neuro.12.006.2007

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

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Understanding Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation in the Classroom

What’s the magic formula?

In today’s fast-paced world, engaging students is a major challenge for teachers. Oftentimes, it’s all about finding the proper motivation. But which type of motivation are we talking about? Intrinsic motivation? Extrinsic motivation? Or perhaps a combination of both? Here, some clarification of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and a few suggestions to help you inspire your students. 

What is intrinsic motivation?

Intrinsic motivation is doing something for the sake of personal satisfaction. The primary motivator is internal (i.e. you don’t expect to get anything in return). You are intrinsically motivated when you do something simply because it makes you feel good, is personally challenging, and/or leads to a sense of accomplishment. For example, a student may be intrinsically motivated to read because it satisfies their curiosity about the world and brings them a sense of calm. Intrinsic motivation is doing something “just because.”  

What is extrinsic motivation?

Extrinsic motivation is doing something to earn a reward or to avoid a punishment. The primary motivator is external (i.e. you expect to get something for completing a certain task, or you want to avoid a consequence for not doing something). For example, a student studies for a test because they want to earn a good grade. Or they mind their behavior because they don’t want to lose their recess. Students choose behaviors not because they enjoy them or find them satisfying, but in order to get something in return or avoid an adverse outcome.

Does extrinsic motivation work?

As educators, we have heard a lot about the downside of extrinsic motivation. Studies have shown that extrinsic motivation produces only short-term effects, at best. One study out of Princeton University goes so far as to say, “External incentives are weak reinforcers in the short run, and negative reinforcers in the long run.”  

Does it create dependencies?

Another criticism is that sometimes kids get hooked on the rewards that come with extrinsic motivation. According to Monica Frank, PhD , “The more children are provided rewards for activities that have natural reward, the more they will expect reward and be unable to set or achieve goals without that extrinsic motivation.” We’ve all had students that demand to know “What are we doing this for?” or “What do we get if we complete this task?” If we provide the “why” for our students too frequently, we stand in the way of them becoming independent learners.

Does extrinsic motivation affect a student’s self-esteem?

When children rely too much on external motivation, they learn to compare themselves to others and may give too much weight to other people’s opinions. Do I have as many stickers as Mary? Is my teacher happy with me because I did the assignment the right way? If students are always looking outside of themselves for validation, they will be unhappy and unproductive when that validation is not readily available, and their self-esteem can suffer.   

Is there room for both?

Common sense shows us that extrinsic motivation is not always a bad thing, particularly when it comes to teaching children. In fact, it can sometimes be extremely beneficial, particularly in situations where students need to complete a task that they find unpleasant . In the classroom, just as in real life, there are many things we have to do that, if given the choice, we would not. Sometimes the right incentive serves as the hook that gets students invested in learning. And, we can’t forget: Kids are still developing and building up their bank account of experiences that provide the basis for intrinsic motivation. So if they need a little external motivation to master a new skill or tread into unfamiliar territory, that’s okay.

Bottom line: The key is finding the right balance.

So how can teachers spark their students’ intrinsic motivation?

The word intrinsic means to come from inside, so it seems counterintuitive to imply that we can train a student to be intrinsically motivated. While we cannot change who a student is as an individual, we can can create the optimum environment to encourage students to develop their own motivation muscles. Here are a few suggestions to get you started. 

1. Know your students.

Get to know your kids as individuals and discover what they’re interested in and how they learn best. Then design your instruction around these motivating factors. Change up your instruction to keep kids engaged and interested. Provide a mix of independent, partner, and group work. Use technology. Incorporate art. Keep your finger on the pulse of your students and adjust as necessary.

2. Give them ownership of their environment.

Involve your students in creating the guiding principles of your classroom community. Work together to establish the optimal learning environment for that particular group of individuals. Like all humans, your students are more likely to take care of something they helped to create.

3. Make sure they have a solid foundation.

Explicitly teach basic skills so that students have a solid foundation of knowledge to build upon. Intrinsic motivation will come from being able to tackle complex tasks. Build up students’ confidence and make sure they have the resources they need before they begin.

4. Practice setting goals.

Tap into the power of setting goals with—not for—your students. According to literacy consultant Lindsey Barrett, “Research spanning decades shows that setting student goals improves both motivation and achievement, encourages a growth mindset, and also supports the development of skills students need to be prepared for their future careers.”

5. Give specific feedback.

Give students feedback that focuses on their strengths instead of their weaknesses and be as specific as you possibly can. Instead of saying “great job!” or “you’re so smart,” tie your comments directly to the student’s effort. For example, “Your essay turned out so well because you created an excellent outline to work from,” or “Your conclusion from the science lab was so insightful because you made very keen observations.”

6. Tap into their innate curiosity.

Encourage students to take on assignments simply because they want to know more, instead of feeling required to do so just to receive a grade. Establish a Genius Hour as part of your curriculum to give students the opportunity to direct their own learning. 

7. As much as possible, allow students choice in their work.

In his book The Highly Engaged Classroom , Dr. Robert Marzano touts the importance of student choice. He states that when students are given choices, they perceive classroom activities as more important. This increases their intrinsic motivation for putting in effort and going deeper with their learning. 

8. Make the connection between classroom activities and real-world situations.

Maybe one of your students wants to be an engineer when they grow up. If so, they need to have a solid understanding of math concepts. Knowing that what they’re studying will help them meet their goals in the future will boost your students’ intrinsic motivation.

9. Get out of the way.

Trust your students to find their own way as often as possible. Your work as a teacher is to lay the groundwork and provide a framework for the work to be done. Michael Linsin shares this gentle but powerful way to increase students’ learning, motivation and independence: “Prepare them for success with spot-on instruction, to be sure,” he advises. “But then fade into the background. Independent practice is critical to learning, and offering too much help is often more problematic than not giving enough.”

What are your thoughts on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation? Come share your ideas on our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE.

And for more tips on motivating your students, check out 24 Ways to Motivate Beginning Readers and Students’ Biggest Motivation Killers.

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How to cite a bill, openai prepares to launch web search feature for chatgpt, rivaling google and perplexity, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. essay sample and references.

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation represent two distinct types of motivation that drive human behavior and decision-making. Intrinsic motivation refers to engaging in an activity for its own sake, for the enjoyment or fulfillment it provides, whereas extrinsic motivation involves performing an activity to achieve an external reward or avoid a negative outcome. Understanding the differences between these two types of motivation is crucial in various fields such as education, psychology, business, and personal development, as they play a key role in influencing individuals’ actions, goals, and overall satisfaction.

Key Aspects and Points

Intrinsic Motivation:

• Definition: Intrinsic motivation arises from within the individual. It is driven by personal interest, enjoyment, or inherent satisfaction in the task itself.
• Characteristics: Activities are performed for their inherent pleasure or fulfillment. For example, a person may engage in painting purely because they enjoy the creative process.
• Impact on Behavior: Intrinsic motivation is often linked to higher levels of engagement, creativity, and persistence. It is also associated with a deeper learning and understanding of subjects or skills.
• Challenges: Maintaining intrinsic motivation can be challenging in environments overly focused on rewards or external outcomes.

Extrinsic Motivation:

• Definition: Extrinsic motivation is driven by external factors, such as rewards, recognition, or avoidance of negative consequences.
• Characteristics: The primary motivator is the desire to obtain external rewards (like money or grades) or to avoid punishments or negative outcomes.
• Impact on Behavior: While extrinsic motivation can effectively initiate and guide behavior, it may not always lead to deep engagement or long-term persistence. It can sometimes undermine intrinsic motivation.
• Applications: Extrinsic motivators are commonly used in various settings, including workplaces and schools, to encourage desired behaviors.

Interplay Between Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation:

• The relationship between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is complex. In some cases, extrinsic rewards can diminish intrinsic motivation, a phenomenon known as the “overjustification effect.”
• However, extrinsic motivators can also complement intrinsic motivation, especially when they align with the individual’s values and self-concept.

Factors Influencing Motivation:

• Personal interests, values, goals, and self-determination significantly influence intrinsic motivation.
• External factors like societal norms, cultural values, and environmental cues play a crucial role in shaping extrinsic motivation.

Relevance in Different Domains:

• In education, fostering intrinsic motivation can lead to a more profound and self-driven learning experience. Extrinsic motivators, like grades and rewards, are also used to motivate students.
• In the workplace, understanding these motivations helps in designing effective incentives and job roles that align with employees’ intrinsic interests and extrinsic goals.

Psychological Theories and Models:

• Several psychological theories, such as Self-Determination Theory, explore the dynamics of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, emphasizing the role of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in fostering intrinsic motivation.

In conclusion, intrinsic and extrinsic motivations are fundamental concepts that explain why people behave the way they do. Recognizing and understanding these motivations are essential for effective teaching strategies, workplace management, personal goal setting, and fostering an environment that supports both personal satisfaction and achievement of external objectives.

Suggested sources and references:

• Bénabou, R., & Tirole, J. (2003). Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation. In The Review of Economic Studies (Vols. 70, pp. 489-520). The Review of Economic Studies. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-937X.00253
• Vallerand, R. Toward A Hierarchical Model of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation. In Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vols. 29, pp. 271-360). Advances in Experimental Social Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60019-2
• Ryan, R., & Deci, E. (2020). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory perspective: Definitions, theory, practices, and future directions. In Contemporary Educational Psychology . Contemporary Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2020.101860
• Guay, F., Vallerand, R., & Blanchard, C. (2000). On the Assessment of Situational Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation: The Situational Motivation Scale (SIMS). In Motivation and Emotion (Vols. 24, pp. 175-213). Motivation and Emotion. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005614228250
• Zeng, D., Takada, N., Hara, Y., Sugiyama, S., Ito, Y., Nihei, Y., & Asakura, K. (2022). Impact of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation on Work Engagement: A Cross-Sectional Study of Nurses Working in Long-Term Care Facilities. In International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (Vols. 19). International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031284
• Azid, M. B. B. A., Mazalan, N. S., Pa, W. M. W., Kamaruzaman, F. M., & Nazarudin, M. N. (2023). Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation in Sports. In International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development . International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development. https://doi.org/10.6007/ijarped/v12-i3/18460
• Good, V., Hughes, D. E., Kirca, A. H., & McGrath, S. (2022). A self-determination theory-based meta-analysis on the differential effects of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on salesperson performance. In Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science (Vols. 50, pp. 586-614). Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-021-00827-6

Suggested reading:

• Sansone, C., & Harackiewicz, J. M. (2000). Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation . Elsevier. https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=uM10geBB8o4C&source=gbs_api
• Sansone, D. C., Sansone, C., & Harackiewicz, J. M. (2000). Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation . Academic Press. http://books.google.com/books?id=DyeOd0Vb5lQC&dq=Intrinsic+and+Extrinsic+Motivation&hl=&source=gbs_api
• Deci, E. L. (2012). Intrinsic Motivation . Springer Science & Business Media. https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=_Ut-BgAAQBAJ&source=gbs_api
• Staw, B. M. (1976). Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation . http://books.google.com/books?id=nW1RAAAAYAAJ&dq=Intrinsic+and+Extrinsic+Motivation&hl=&source=gbs_api
• Frey, B. S., & Osterloh, M. (2013). Successful Management by Motivation . Springer Science & Business Media. https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=PU76BwAAQBAJ&source=gbs_api
• U., J. (2021). Motivation and Work Performance. The Effects of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation on Work Performance . GRIN Verlag. https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=2lc5EAAAQBAJ&source=gbs_api

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Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation in the Workplace

How it works

Everyone has a different way of motivating themselves. For this assignment, I am going to be discussing the differences between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation in the workplace and how they help achieve goals. I chose this topic, because I find it interesting how different things can motivate people. I first heard of these different motivators when we watched a TED talk done by Dan Pink in class. One of the things that Pink is trying to get across is, “There is a mismatch between what science knows and what business does.

” (Pink), and I will further discuss why that is in this paper.

First, I am going to be discussing intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is the desire to accomplish something because it matters, the individual enjoys it, they find it interesting, or it is a part of something important (Pink). Intrinsic motivators are more likely to motivate people by the work itself, by the internal satisfaction an individual gets when they accomplish a task, and by the feeling that they are achieving something (“Motivation in the Workplace”). According to Pink, there are three elements that science shows that lead to better performance and personal satisfaction: autonomy, mastery, and purpose (Popova). Autonomy is the desire to control our own lives. Mastery means the urge to continue to improve at something that matters. And purpose is the want to do what we do in hopes that it serves as something meaningful for more than just ourselves. (Pink)

Now, I am going to be discussing extrinsic motivation. Extrinsic motivation requires rewards for jobs done well, such as a raise, or a promotion. It can also be the threat of demotion if the job isn’t done on time or to the best quality (Palizban). Someone who extrinsically motivated will also be wanting praise from their peers or their boss when their task is complete (“Motivation in the Workplace”). According to Pink, extrinsic motivators don’t often work and more often do harm. In Pink’s video he discusses how a group of people did a study on employees. They offered them a small, medium, and a large reward. The employees aiming for the largest reward showed the poorest performance (Pink). According to Pink’s research, extrinsic rewards, such as “if-then” rewards, crush all creativity and self-motivation, and it doesn’t matter the task or age. Pink’s research showed that “if-then” rewards tend to: decrease performance, worsen behavior, inspire cheating, taking shortcuts and unethical behavior to an individual, even become addictive, and lastly “if-then” rewards could make individuals take on short-term thinking (Topham).

I am now going to discuss what I learned about how a leader can extrinsically and intrinsically motivate their team. If the leader is wanting to extrinsically motivate a group, they need to determine the groups and everyone’s goals and the outcomes that are expected. The leader needs to establish a set of rewards for the individual or group who does the best and give consequences to the underachievers, this could be in the form of more training. Setting goals, helping people get motivated to achieve tasks, and acknowledging them for their achievements is a proven method that betters a business. But, if the leader in charge only motivates their team extrinsically, the company could face difficulties. Extrinsic motivators, by themselves, forces people to look at the achievements, and pay little attention to the quality of the performance. This could create an environment where the motivation is not evenly distributed, meaning the top members are highly motivated, and the average members get demotivated (Palizban).

If a leader is wanting to intrinsically motivate a group, they need to create an environment where the members get excited by doing the work they do. It’s the rush of energy they get when they perform a task and the satisfaction they get inside when they achieve it. According to many HR experts, individuals are more likely to be intrinsically motivated if the company has a captivating vision, clear objectives, and a supportive team. It is idea to have an intrinsically motivated team, but it is difficult to just rely on a team to be internally motivated. Without extrinsic motivators like goals and recognition, it’s difficult to keep a business afloat (Palizban).

The best way to motivate a group is by using both intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. To do this, the leader should create an exciting vision and clear goals (extrinsic) and enhance the company’s culture and environment so that the members love what they do and set their own individual goals (intrinsic). The leader should also show appreciation for the members based on their efforts and achievements (extrinsic) and on their contribution and behavior such as collaboration that are like the company’s values (intrinsic) (Palizban).

I chose this topic to help better my knowledge on how people motivate themselves and others. I learned how leaders can help motivate their teams, because not everyone is motivated by the same things. I found it interesting how Dan Pink thinks that extrinsic motivation isn’t good for motivating people in the workplace, but other sites show that when both motivators are used, it could result in success. 

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Intrinsic Motivation — Importance of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation for Students

Importance of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation for Students

• Categories: Intrinsic Motivation Motivation Student

About this sample

Words: 428 |

Published: Aug 30, 2022

Words: 428 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

• Intrinsic Motivation During Educational Process
• Extrinsic Motivation During Educational Process

Works Cited:

Intrinsic motivation during educational process, extrinsic motivation during educational process.

• Ezeanu, E. (2011). Generalization: A Key Element of Human Thinking. Art of Wellbeing.
• Raskoff, S. (2017). Understanding Generalizations and Stereotypes. Everyday Sociology Blog.
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• Saucier, G. (2000). Isms and the structure of social attitudes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78(2), 366-385.
• Schein, V. E. (2007). Women in management: Reflections and projections. Women in Management: Current Research Issues, 1-35.
• Sidanius, J., Pratto, F., & Bobo, L. (1996). Racism, conservatism, affirmative action , and intellectual sophistication: A matter of principled conservatism or group dominance?. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70(3), 476-490.
• Steele, C. M., Spencer, S. J., & Aronson, J. (2002). Contending with group image: The psychology of stereotype and social identity threat. Advances in experimental social psychology, 34, 379-440.
• Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. The social psychology of intergroup relations, 33-47.
• Vescio, T. K., Snyder, M., & Butz, D. A. (2003). The impact of ethnicity and gender on the evaluation of achievement-related traits. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 33(8), 1653-1679.
• Vorauer, J. D., & Kumhyr, S. M. (2001). Is this about you or me? Self-versus other-directed judgments and feelings in response to intergroup interaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80(2), 476-493.

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Extrinsic Motivation Essay

Motivation, Extrinsic And Extrinsic Motivation

INTRODUCTION A widely observed behavior in students is their decrease in motivation. Many will label students as being ‘lazy’ or ‘careless’ with their work when in reality multiple factors are influencing their motivation to do well in school. Two kinds of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic, are the primary influences on how students behave in school. Intrinsic motivation is very important because it is what makes students want to learn more because the reward is self-satisfaction and enjoyment

Motivation And Extrinsic Motivation

Motivation is defined as the driving force or the reason behind any action. There are two types of motivation:- 1. Extrinsic Motivation: Extrinsic motivation is defined as the type of motivation in which the person is motivated by external benefits. These benefits can occur in tangible or intangible forms. Extrinsic motivation that is in tangible nature includes money, medals and trophies while intangible forms of extrinsic motivation includes praise, recognition etc. For example a student who works

Motivation, Intrinsic And Extrinsic Motivation

Motivation is a very important factor no matter what sport you coach or what the team or athlete goals are. A true coach must be able to understand their athlete and be able to tap into their motivation, maximizing their performance. Chapter four was written about two particular types of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic. No matter what theory you believe, all theories boil down to these two types of motivation. Knowing the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, can help you hone

Extrinsic Motivation Definition

Definition of motivation- The internal mechanisms and external stimuli that arouse and direct behaviour. Intrinsic motivation- Intrinsic motivation is the internal factors of motivation. An individual that has intrinsic motivation usually plays the sport that they play because of their personal satisfaction and because it is fun and enjoyable. Also because they feel the need and desire to achieve big things and being successful by playing this sport. They also have the will to win all the games

Examples Of Extrinsic Motivation

intrinsic motivation? With people so used to monetary rewards and other extrinsic motivation, how do managers use intrinsic motivation methods to motivate staff? Introduction Work motivation can be defined as the psychological forces within a person that determine an employee’s behavior in an organization, effort level, and persistence in the face of obstacles (Kanfer, 1990). In simple words, motivation determines why an employee acts a certain way. Most managers agree that employee motivation can be

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

Motivation Ken 1 Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Literature Review AK 11 April 2013 Professor J. Losche PSY-432 Ken 2 Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation help to fit psychological values and beliefs of an individual. Intrinsic motivation comes from the inside of an individual, such as the drive to do something. Extrinsic motivation comes from the outside factors, such as doing something for a reward. There are mixed emotions

Instinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

Definitions Intrinsic Motivation Intrinsically motivated behaviours are behaviours or tasks that are displayed or completed with no apparent reward other than the activity itself (Deci, 1975). Intrinsic motivation is fueled by personal enjoyment, interest or pleasure. In a classroom setting, intrinsic motivation refers to the student completing an activity or displaying a desired behaviour purely for its inherent satisfaction (Ryan and Deci, 2000, as cited in Oudeyer and Kaplan, 2007). Salmon (2007)

*Extrinsic motivation is a behavior or activity to receive an award or ovoid a punishment. Intrinsic motivation is a behavior is rewarding personally and doing the activity for the sake of doing and not for a reward. Both motivations can be very useful. Extrinsic can be used to motivate someone to learn new skills by offering a reward. It can also be a source of feedback to let someone know that they are doing a good job. Intrinsic helps when praise from outside increases your internal motivation

Analysis Of Extrinsic Motivation

motivate others. The evidence he showed was giving an extrinsic reward produces substandard results when individuals where asked to complete a job where critical thinking was needed to complete the task at hand. Individuals become less creative and unable to solve problems when they are given a reward in the end. Dan showed that people are motivated by cognitive task than those who are rewarded. Dan also points out that removing extrinsic motivation actually encourages more creative thinking and ultimately

Extrinsic Motivation Paper

provide great leadership in the classroom. It speaks of the two types of motivation, intrinsic, and extrinsic. They are both considered to be very powerful motivators, and skills that we as educators should learn, if we want our students to succeed. Intrinsic motivation comes from within us, what we do. How we can use what the student likes to provide good leadership, and help our students achieve their goals. Extrinsic motivation is more like a system of rewards and punishments,

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Extrinsic Motivation Essays (Examples)

256+ documents containing “extrinsic motivation” .

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Motivation intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation plays a.

Motivation: Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Motivation plays a critical role in the success of an organization. Employees who are motivated to achieve organizational goals and targets leave a positive impression on the overall performance of that organization. While there are many theories and strategies concerning motivation, the one that is most critical is the debate regarding intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. Motivational theories like Maslow's theory or Vroom's expectancy theory fail to completely answer the question of which kind of reward is more important for motivation: intrinsic or extrinsic. For example can we truly motivate a person by showing him how extra effort on a task can enhance his knowledge or do we really need to attach a monetary reward with it? A student may be motivated to study harder for intrinsic reward like more knowledge and higher learning but without appreciation and recognition, will he continue to put in the effort simply….

Weinberg R, & Gould, D (2003). Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology:

Human Kinetics.

Deci, E.L. And Ryan, R.M. (1994). Promoting Self Determined Education.

Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research. 38, 3-41.

Extrinsic Motivation

Extrinsic motivation refers to behavior that is driven by external rewards such as money, fame, grades, and praise. This type of motivation arises from outside the individual, as opposed to intrinsic motivation, which involves engaging in a behavior because it is personally rewarding; essentially, performing an activity for its own sake rather than the desire for some external reward (yan & Deci, 2000). One of the primary theories associated with extrinsic motivation is the behaviorist concept of operant conditioning. B.F. Skinner, a well-known psychologist, suggested that behavior is a function of its consequences; thus, behavior that is reinforced tends to be repeated (i.e., strengthened), while behavior that is not reinforced tends to die out-or be extinguished (i.e., weakened) (Skinner, 1953). For example, when a student receives a reward (such as a gold star) for a high test score, this positive reinforcement may increase the likelihood that the student will study for….

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American psychologist, 55(1), 68.

Deci, E. L., Koestner, R., & Ryan, R. M. (1999). A meta-analytic review of experiments examining the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. Psychological bulletin, 125(6), 627.

Gagné, M., & Deci, E. L. (2005). Self-determination theory and work motivation. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26(4), 331-362.

Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey. American psychologist, 57(9), 705.

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations at the City Hall

Motivation refers to the driving force that results from desire and an individual's will in life. Motivation has been seen to have roots in the behavioral, physiological, social, and cognitive area. This is rooted in the basic impulse where individual's skills and well-being are utilized for the benefit of the organization. It is the inner drive to act or behave in a certain manner. The innermost conditions of an individual such as goals, desires, and wishes activate an individual to move in a positive direction. This report endeavors to explain about the motivators that exist in the public agency based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs. It also endeavors to explain the assumptions made concerning employees in my agency: the City Hall supervisor's office. Maslow's Hierarchy of needs. Maslow assumed that individuals are motivated by needs that are unmet. When an individual's needs are not met, they feel driven and motivated to accomplish….

Ryan, R; Deci, L.E (2000). "Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions." Contemporary Educational Psychology 25.1: 54 -- 67.

Motivation Is the Key to Materializing Energy

Motivation is the key to materializing energy and getting things accomplished. Organizational relationships require proper motivation from all sides of the relationships. Leaders must be motivated and workers must be motivated as well in order to succeed at any mission. The purpose of this essay is to design an organizational motivation plan that encourages and maintains a high level of performance from the members of the Woo Widget Company. The essay will first describe the need for the plan before introducing key components of the system that intends to increase the productivity and efficiency of the employees at Woo. Before designing a motivational plan that will work in this environment, it is necessary to reveal some important facts that contribute to the motivating factors of the employees at this organization. WooWoo designs widgets, but the widget that WooWoo makes is a clone of a nationally known widget. Woo sells their widget….

Amabile, T. (1997). Motivating Creativity in Organizations. California Management Review 40, 1, 1997. Retrieved from http://bear.warrington.ufl.edu/weitz/mar7786/articles/amabile%20ccal%20mgt%20revie w.pdf

Osterloh, M. et al. (2002). The Dynamics of Motivation in New Organizational Forms. International Journal of the Economics of Business, 9,1, 2002; 61-77. Retrieved from  http://www.bsfrey.ch/articles/366_02.pdf 

Vallerand, R.J. (March 08, 1993). The Academic Motivation Scale: A Measure of Intrinsic, Extrinsic, and Amotivation in Education. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 52, 4, 1003-17.

Motivation the Latin Root of

esearch has identified ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck as the most important achievement attributions. The last category focuses on two issues: how motivation gets translated into regulated behavior, and how motivation and cognition are linked. These theories can provide insights into the leader who is trying to motivate others to follow. It must be understood that no two people are motivated in the same way. For a committee with a small number of members, it may be best to look at each person and define how he or she is best motivated and then put these different individuals into groups and decide what can be the specific motivator for each group. For example, those individuals who are extrinsically motivated may be motivated if they receive some form of gratitude from the principal. In order to determine the particular motivations of these individuals, it may be necessary to talk one-on-one….

Wigfield, a (2002). Motivational Beliefs, Values and Goals. Annual Review of Psychology. 109+.

Motivation What Is it Like to Have

Motivation What is it like to have enthusiasm? Does this come from within one person? Are outside influences important as well? Can it change someone's life? One will discuss motivation and provide examples as to how it impacts an individual on regular basis. Intrinsic motivation is what comes from inside a person. For example, he or she is motivated to learn at school in order to get the best grade possible. This can make someone work hard at achieving their goals. If he or she wants an A in Biology, then he or she will work twice as hard to accomplish this. In the long run, the individual may or may not get what it is they want despite having the drive. Extrinsic motivation is important as well. When it comes to extrinsic motivation, a person looks outside of themselves in order to seek ways in which to do a better job at….

Motivation Organizational Behavior Has Long

These performance appraisals are usually given to employees by managers. Such appraisals occur once or twice per year, depending upon the industry and the position of the employee. In some cases, performance appraisals are carried out by colleagues. egardless of how feedback is given most organizations recognize it as a legitimate and productive way to judge performance and present employees with ways to improve job performance. Examples of Employee motivation According to Neff (2002) the ability to motivate employees is an essential component in creating an organization that is successful. The author points out that the most successful organizations in the world are always succeeding in making certain that job satisfaction and motivation are primary priorities. These organizations have realized that employees who are motivated are also more productive and therefore improve the bottom line. Greater productivity usually leads to greater job satisfaction and ultimately greater customer satisfaction. The author explains Successful….

Brief, a.P., & Weiss, H.M. (2002). Organizational Behavior: Affect in the Workplace. 279+.

Cameron, J., & Pierce, W.D. (2002). Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation: Resolving the Controversy. Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.

Kermally, S. (2005). Gurus on Managing People. London: Thorogood.

London, M. (2003). Job Feedback: Giving, Seeking, and Using Feedback for Performance Improvement. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Motivation Performance & Achivement the

Additionally, those who were in the test group also scored, on average 20% higher on the test when it was graded by the researcher. Though the case study was based on an abnormal psychology case the questions are associated with content (i.e. reading comprehension) and are not expected to be interpretive. The group was also debriefed at the close of the exam and informed of the nature of the exam and the resulting scoring, which was based on participation as apposed to test scores. Discussion This brief research work demonstrates that extrinsic motivation (in an anomalous form) motivates students to achieve success on tests. The balance between intrinsic (results of moderate scores on MSLQ) and extrinsic, the motivation to score high on the exam as an impetus to a higher extra credit score, as apposed to a participation only score motivated those students in the test group to pay closer attention….

Motivation the Present Study Aims to Establish

Motivation The present study aims to establish a relationship between academic motivation and academic self-efficacy. More specifically we will be looking at whether individuals with high academic self-efficacy possess high intrinsic or high extrinsic motivation levels. A sample of approximately 100 undergraduate students will complete the Academic Motivation Scale, which measures their level of academic motivation as well as their type of motivation, and the College Academic Self-Efficacy Scale to measure their level of academic self-efficacy. It is expected that individuals with high levels of academic self-efficacy will also show high levels of intrinsic academic motivation. These findings are significant in that they would give insight as to the reason students strive toward success, which if known could play a role in the increase in college admission and retention, for if it is known what motivates one to perform well academically, it is thus known what to target as far as….

Bandura, A. (1991). Social cognitive theory of self-regulation. Organizational Behavior

and Human Decision Processes, 50, 248 -- 287.

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: the exercise of control. New York, Freeman.

Carway, K., Tucker, C.M., Reinke, W.M., & Hall, C. (2003). Self-efficacy, goal orientation, and fear of failure as predictors Of school engagement in high school students, Psychology in the School, 40, 417 -- 427.

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Pay Programs

Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation Motivation A detailed analysis of how differing organizations use various blends of extrinsic and intrinsic compensation and benefits strategies to maximize organizational potential to meet the needs of the workforce. Describes the myriad factors including the industry, strategic planning, compensation philosophy and recruitment/retention strategies that when balanced, create a changing yet dynamic and motivated generational workforce that succeeds in accomplishing workplace goals. Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation The purpose of this analysis is to describe how different organizations can potentially use different blends of extrinsic and intrinsic compensation and benefits strategies to maximize organizational potential to meet the needs of their workforce. Traditionally compensation has been a highly volatile and controversial aspect of human resource management, with managers typically siding on the intrinsic or extrinsic side of compensation strategies. However research suggests that a program must address multiple factors that will balance both extrinsic and intrinsic factors to succeed. Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic….

References:

Hendriks, P. & Sousa, S. 2008. Motivating University Researchers. Higher Education Policy, 21,

pp.359-376.

Kunz, J. & Quitmann, A.2011. The influence of incentive systems on intrinsic motivation.

Zeitschrift fur Personal forschung, 25(1), 55-76.

Motivation in Schools

Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation in Schools "Do students Care About Learning?" "What Engages Underachieving Middle School Students in Learning?" "Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation in Schools: A Reconciliation" In "Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation in Schools: A Reconciliation," Martin V. Covington argues that both approaches can be effective if done well, and do not necessarily have to be incompatible. In his evaluation of the literature, he found that other factors, such as how interested the student is in the work, how successful they feel, affect student effort. He also found that the extrinsic reward of a good grade increased intrinsic motivation. He recommended a grading practice that compared each student's performance to a set standard, rather than grading on a curve, can increase intrinsic motivation. In "Do students Care About Learning?" Marge Scherer interviewed author Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi regarding his book about youth and the world of work. The participants reported eight times a day how much they….

Motivation Two Cases Examined the

In this case one may imagine the student who attending class in school and cannot concentrate on what is being taught because their stomach is rumbling from lack of having eaten and they also have a headache from a general lack of nutrition. Furthermore, this student has no sense of security or safety and is nervous and anxious. Example 2: The individual in this example is not hungry and they are not tired but they are nervous because their parents fought all night and this resulted in their being awake and scared the neighbors would call the police again and that their parents would wind up in jail by morning. This individual has no inner motivation to learn because they are worried and stressed about their own safety and security in their home life. This individual may very well be extrinsically motivated to learn but have not reached the level….

Bibliography

Soenens, Bart et al. (2005) Maladaptive Perfectionist Self-representation: The mediational link between psychological control and adjustment. Personality and Individual Differences 38 (2005). Online available at Science Direct:

 http://www.psych.rochester.edu/SDT/documents/2005_SoenensVansteenkisteLuytenDuriezGossens_PAID.pdf 

Michalik, Nicole M. et al. (2007) Longitudinal Relations among Parental Emotional Expressivity and Sympathy and Prosocial Behavior in Adolescence. Social Development May 2007 Vol. 16 No.2. Online available at: ttp:/ / www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1949391

Experience Alters How We Perceive Emotion (2002) Science Daily - Science News. 18 Jun 2002. Online available at  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/06/020618072601.htm

Motivation in the Workplace

Workplace Motivation This paper investigates the issue of motivation as it applies to an organizational setting. The research regarding motivation in the workplace has been a major area of investigation that is of interest to corporate leaders, managers, organizational psychologists, and educators. The issue that this paper will discuss has to do with the particular factors that managers and leaders can address to increase the motivation of their workers to perform as well as to increase the job satisfaction levels of their employees. However, motivation is only one issue regarding increased productivity or increased job satisfaction; we would certainly think that at a basic level an employee would need a certain level of motivation to perform as well as the ability to actually do the job (as it turns out the research is consistent with this type of common-sense thinking). However, the actual types of interventions/activities that can be used to motivate….

Argyris, C. 1993, Knowledge for action: a guide to overcoming barriers to organizational change, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA.

Chien, J.C. 2013,'Examining Herzberg's Two Factor Theory in a large Chinese chemical fiber company' World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, vol. 78, no. 248, pp.1433-1438.

Gneezy, U. And Rustichini, A. 2000, 'Pay enough or don't pay at all', Quarterly Journal of Economics vol. 115, no. 3, pp. 791-810.

Hackman, J.R. And Oldham, G.R. 1980, Work redesign. Pearson Education Inc., Upper Saddle River, N.J.

Motivation Motivating the Seemingly Unmotivated

Extrinsic rewards should only be used when other efforts to actively engage students in learning has failed; (3) In the event extrinsic rewards must be utilized, they should be "just powerful enough to control behavior" and should be eliminated in phases before all intrinsic motivation is lost. Jones, Vermette, and Jones posit in their article, "An Integration of "Backwards Planning' Unit Design with the "Two Step" Lesson Planning Framework," planning and engaging students in effective lessons is a fundamental component of successful teaching and therefore, motivating students (Skowron, 2001). The authors created the concept of backwards planning which requires educators to start with a nominal list of essential questions all students must answer by the end of the lesson plan. With the end goal in mind, teachers then design assessments based on those understandings and strategically crafted lessons to achieve the desired objectives. Once the goals and assessments have been created,….

Alvermann, L. (1999). Classroom goal orientation, school belonging, and social goals as predictors of students' positive and negative affect following the transition to middle school. Journal of Research and Development in Education, 32(2), 89-103.

Assor, A., Kaplan, H., Kanat-Maymon, Y., & Roth, G. (2005). Directly controlling teacher behaviors as predictors of poor motivation and engagement in girls and boys: The role of anger and anxiety. Learning and Instruction, 15, 397-413.

Assor, A., Kaplan, H., & Roth, g. (2002). Choice is good, but relevance is excellent: Autonomy enhancing and suppressing teaching behaviors predicting students' engagement in schoolwork. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 27, 261-278.

Assor, A., Roth, G., & Deci, E. (2004). The emotional costs of parents' conditional regard: A self-determination theory analysis. Journal of Personality, 72, 47-88.

Motivation the Success of Any

In the absence of both factors, employee motivation will not work. Green and Butkus also shared that although Vroom's model had been widely accepted for a number of years, it lacked applicability that it cannot be used in practice. Aside from Vroom, Green and Butkus (1999) also shared about Green's own Belief System model. This model was actually a practical application of Viktor Vroom's Expectancy Theory and was reported to be better utilized by the workforce. The Belief System Theory focused on using a structured and facilitated meeting between the supervisor and the staff. This meeting becomes a venue to discuss motivational problems on the areas that Vroom had developed and will provide the manager and the employee with a specific period to help address motivational issues in their workplace. Discussion Whiteley and Kerr's ideas focus on an individual's motivation and how it can be used to help him contribute more to….

The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition. (2000). Houghton Mifflin Company.

Kerr, Steven. (1997). Ultimate Rewards: what really motivates people to achieve. Boston, Ma. Harvard Business School Press.

Whiteley, Philip. (2002). Motivation. Oxford, United Kingdom Capstone Publishing, Ltd.

Green, Thad B. And Butkus, Raymond T. (1999). Motivation, beliefs and organizational transformation. Westport, Conn. Quorum Books.

Could you provide some essay topic ideas related to Psychology?

1. The Influence of Cognitive Distortions on Mental Health: - How do cognitive distortions, such as catastrophising, overgeneralisation, and black-and-white thinking, contribute to the development and maintenance of mental health issues like anxiety, depression, and PTSD? - Explore the role of cognitive restructuring techniques in challenging and modifying dysfunctional thought patterns, thereby improving mental health outcomes. 2. Attachment Styles and Their Impact on Relationships: - Elaborate on the different attachment styles, including secure, anxious-preoccupied, dismissive-avoidant, and fearful-avoidant, and their formation during childhood. - Analyse the effects of attachment styles on romantic relationships, focusing on how they influence communication, trust, intimacy, and....

can you give me a literature review about factors students productivity and their coping strategies

## Factors Influencing Student Productivity and Coping Strategies Introduction Student productivity is a crucial aspect of academic success, and numerous factors influence students' ability to stay focused, efficient, and motivated. This literature review examines key factors affecting student productivity and explores coping strategies students can employ to overcome challenges and enhance their performance. Factors Influencing Student Productivity 1. Time Management: Time management skills enable students to prioritize tasks, allocate time effectively, and meet deadlines. Poor time management can lead to procrastination, overwhelm, and decreased productivity. 2. Motivation: Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation drives students to engage with their studies. Intrinsic motivation stems from interest and enjoyment, while extrinsic....

how engagement helps student reading

Engagement: A Fundamental Catalyst for Student Reading Engagement, the active involvement of students in meaningful learning experiences, plays a pivotal role in fostering student reading comprehension and literacy development. When students are engaged, they are more motivated to read, retain information better, and develop a lifelong love of reading. Cognitive Benefits of Engagement Engaged students demonstrate enhanced cognitive abilities that support reading comprehension: Improved Attention and Focus: Engagement captivates students' attention, allowing them to concentrate on the text and actively process the information. Enhanced Memory: Engagement promotes deeper encoding of information, which facilitates retention and recall. Critical Thinking: Engaged students are more likely....

\"How can extrinsic motivation help individuals achieve their goals?\"

Extrinsic motivation can help individuals achieve their goals by providing external rewards or incentives that encourage them to work towards their objectives. This type of motivation can be especially effective in the following ways: 1. Providing tangible rewards: Extrinsic motivation can be in the form of tangible rewards such as money, gifts, or recognition. These rewards can serve as incentives for individuals to stay motivated and focused on achieving their goals. 2. Creating healthy competition: Extrinsic motivation can also come from competition with others, such as colleagues or teammates. This can push individuals to work harder in order to outperform others and....

Motivation: Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Motivation plays a critical role in the success of an organization. Employees who are motivated to achieve organizational goals and targets leave a positive impression on…

Extrinsic motivation refers to behavior that is driven by external rewards such as money, fame, grades, and praise. This type of motivation arises from outside the individual, as opposed…

Motivation refers to the driving force that results from desire and an individual's will in life. Motivation has been seen to have roots in the behavioral, physiological, social, and…

Motivation is the key to materializing energy and getting things accomplished. Organizational relationships require proper motivation from all sides of the relationships. Leaders must be motivated and workers must…

esearch has identified ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck as the most important achievement attributions. The last category focuses on two issues: how motivation gets translated into regulated…

Motivation What is it like to have enthusiasm? Does this come from within one person? Are outside influences important as well? Can it change someone's life? One will discuss motivation…

These performance appraisals are usually given to employees by managers. Such appraisals occur once or twice per year, depending upon the industry and the position of the employee.…

Additionally, those who were in the test group also scored, on average 20% higher on the test when it was graded by the researcher. Though the case study…

Research Proposal

Motivation The present study aims to establish a relationship between academic motivation and academic self-efficacy. More specifically we will be looking at whether individuals with high academic self-efficacy possess high…

Research Paper

Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation Motivation A detailed analysis of how differing organizations use various blends of extrinsic and intrinsic compensation and benefits strategies to maximize organizational potential to meet the needs…

Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation in Schools "Do students Care About Learning?" "What Engages Underachieving Middle School Students in Learning?" "Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation in Schools: A Reconciliation" In "Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation in…

In this case one may imagine the student who attending class in school and cannot concentrate on what is being taught because their stomach is rumbling from lack…

Workplace Motivation This paper investigates the issue of motivation as it applies to an organizational setting. The research regarding motivation in the workplace has been a major area of investigation that…

Extrinsic rewards should only be used when other efforts to actively engage students in learning has failed; (3) In the event extrinsic rewards must be utilized, they should be…

Literature Review

In the absence of both factors, employee motivation will not work. Green and Butkus also shared that although Vroom's model had been widely accepted for a number of…

Essay On Intrinsic And Extrinsic Motivation

Show More Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Motivation Motivation can be understood as a mixture of attention and effort towards specific objectives that comes as a result of purposiveness and aspirations to obtain a specific result, or accomplish goals. The fundamental opposition proposed between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation suggests that it can be considered as arising inside the individual as a self-regulated occurrence or by imposition from external sources. To define the two types of motivation we could say that intrinsic motivation is when you want to do something, and extrinsic motivation is when somebody else tries to make you do something. “Intrinsic motivation occurs when we act without any obvious external rewards. We simply enjoy an activity or see it as an opportunity to explore, learn, and actualize our potentials." (Coon & Mitterer, 2010) …show more content… Discussion It might seem that intrinsic motivation is better than extrinsic motivation, but studies have revealed that people will stick to a specific task, or invest more time in it in order to be successful if they are intrinsically motivated. Nevertheless, extrinsic motivation plays an important role too, without extrinsic motivation, there would be no reason for many of us to exercise, work, or do many of the activities that are required to live a healthy life. Conclusion The overjustification effect applies a restriction on motivation and its effectiveness. It let us know that we need to be careful in the use of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation so that we do not undermine any of them. The motivation process seem to be a personal choice that will respond to the student personality, culture, education and cognitive level. The instructors and teacher should play a key role in facilitation the right means for students to find their own

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Project 9: An Observation of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation (Chapter 12- Motivating Students to Learn) For this project, I observed Miss. Walters, who is a gym teacher at the school I work at, Boulder Hill Elementary.…

Accelerated Reader By George Gardiner

Motivation is a complex construct, but in it’s simplest form motivation can be broken into two main components: intrinsic and extrinsic. When a person is intrinsically motivated to do something, the desire emanates from within. Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, involves completing a task for an external reason. By encouraging children through rewards, their intrinsic motivation is destroyed. When the focus of an activity becomes gaining a reward, intrinsic motivation is reduced.…

An Analysis Of Crimes Against Humanity By Ward Churchill

Sometimes, motivation results from internal desire for something’s that we need or want to get means that some motivation are derived from internally factors that are not related with any outside factors of forces. Furthermore, this motivation mostly derived from intangible factors like believes, traditions, norms, values, and so on. For example, if someone write music for own pleasure it is known as intrinsic motivation. Another examples is that when people act on things based on their believe system that things are examples of intrinsic motivation like following tradition, following ethical concerns and so…

Theme Of Motivation In Not-So-Secret Secrets Of Success

If you've read the previous book in this series, Not-So-Secret Secrets of Success, you may know that I like to contrast and compare ancient and modern ideas to find often overlooked wisdom. In many different time periods there are surprisingly similar theories about motivation and what drives humans to succeed. Since the dawn of civilization philosophers, leaders and researchers have all had an effect on our understanding of motivation, but we still, at times, find ourselves baffled by the things we do. By demonstrating how modern teachings often echo ancient ideas, my hope is that we can understand this timeless advice and use it in our own motivational strategies.…

Student Debt

(Lang, par 10). On the surface, extrinsic motivation may seem like it helps students learn by giving them a goal to work towards, but in reality it is only hurting their education. Intrinsic motivation “leads to deep learning” and can help students retain information better (Lang, par 10). Students who learn because they are interested in the material and what they might get out of it are more likely to succeed than students who only learn for a good…

Sports Psychology In Touch Football

Motivation can have a significant influence on athletes’ performance. (Hede et al, 2011, PG 11) There are two types of motivation they are; Intrinsic and Extrinsic. Intrinsic Motivation refers to an individual’s enjoyment to something, whereas Extrinsic Motivation refers to an individual completing a task for external rewards.…

Self-Actualization And Self Determination Theory Analysis

This is about the integration of one’s self. This comes from the basic needs that are met and/or not met. The researchers found that when intrinsically motivated people it was due to a maintenance and enhancement from social contexts, that is however, undermined by things like rewards, threats of punishments and controlling evaluations (Deci, Ryan, & Guay, 2013). This leads to people doing behaviors that they do not find interesting. This is the area where people need the extrinsic motivation.…

Schedulinging In Macy's Inc.

Extrinsic Motivation Theory is displayed in the issue of the scheduling system within the Macys Inc. because it affects how employees view themselves in relation to the business. Extrinsic motivation happens when people are motivated to avoid a negative outcome. Intrinsic motivation occurs when people participate in a particular way because it is naturally rewarding. This idea of extrinsic motivation occurs when people are forced to work a shift that they are not available to work to prevent termination or conflict with authority. Employees are also forced to give shifts away to other associates, causing them to lose guaranteed hours, in order to prevent having attendance points deducted from their record.…

Psychology Of Happiness: Autonomy, Competence, And Relatedness

One should have the opportunity to put our basic needs first. Intrinsic motivation is a doing things for ourselves for our own enjoyment, while extrinsic motivation deals with external rewards or punishments. A lot of individuals engage in extrinsic motivation because of their outside situations, while learning to motivation oneself, mentally, will help lead to fulfilling the need of satisfaction and…

The Self-Determination Theory And Physical Activity

(Teixeira, Carraça, Markland, Silva & Ryan, 2012) Extrinsic motivation is a controlled motivation that contains four different regulatory types. (Ntoumanis, Edmunds & Duda, 2009) The type of extrinsic motivation that encompasses the greatest amount of self-determination is integrated control. It involves values and beliefs that individuals have, for example exercise just being considered a part of one’s everyday lifestyle.…

Health Club Paper

Based on your readings this week, what does the research show about the new health club owner’s strategy to motivate members to visit the health club and exercise more often? The new health club strategy is defined to motivate others. The owner seems to have motivation and persuasion characterizes such as showing interest, energized, consistency, and scarcity about holding a business to enhance community member’s health (Cialdini, 2001).The new strategy will promote a great amount of performance for individuals on their health issues/concerns. The owner’s focus is on member’s health goals and accomplishments.…

Student Motivation Paper

Chapter 6 of Essentials of Educational Psychology discusses that there are internal and external factors that affect student motivation. Intrinsic (internal) factors include personal beliefs and emotions. Intrinsic motivation entails behaviors that are personally rewarding, for example a student would complete an activity because he finds the activity fun. A student participates in a game because she finds it exciting. Extrinsic (external) motivation are influences outside of the student, examples would be teachers and instructional strategies (Ormrod, 2015).…

Psychology Reflection

In everyday life, it is important to overcome obstacles and complete tasks that one may not wish to complete. Therefore, people often need a driving force or a reward to aim for in order to complete that task. Identifying this has allowed me to understand what pushes me. Through my own exploration, I have had the ability to identify my goals and what motivates me to complete these, such as finishing school work. As a result of the knowledge that I have gained about this topic, I have identified myself as someone who is more extrinsically motivated than intrinsically motivated.…

Importance Of Moral Excellence

First, motivation is intrinsic if an activity is undertaken for the immediate…

Related Topics

• Human behavior
• Maslow's hierarchy of needs
• Reward system

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