Motivation is a key aspect of any effort to make personal or professional change.
You are probably familiar with the concept of intrinsic motivation, which comes from within, driven by personal interest and values, or enjoyment in the task itself.
But what happens when external rewards come into play? While rewards like money, praise, or awards can incentivise behaviour, their effect on motivation varies.
External rewards can sometimes undermine the pure joy and engagement you feel when you pursue activities for their own sake. At other times, they may affirm and even boost your internal drive.
The secret lies in the nature of the reward, the context, and the individual’s mindset. We’ll look at these elements in more detail below.
Understanding motivation
Intrinsic Versus Extrinsic Motivation
I’ve covered this elsewhere, but to understand the impact of external rewards on motivation, we need to understand the difference between two main types of motivation.
Intrinsic motivation refers to the internal drive to engage in an activity for the inherent satisfaction and pleasure it brings, rather than for some separable outcome. Essentially, if you’re intrinsically motivated, you’re acting upon a passion or an inner desire. It is often linked to higher levels of satisfaction and psychological well-being.
On the other hand, extrinsic motivation is influenced by external factors or rewards. This could range from working to earn money, to undertaking a task to receive praise or avoiding a negative consequence.
Extrinsic rewards can be effective, but not so much when they are perceived as controlling or if they undermine your sense of autonomy.
External rewards and their influence on behaviour
External rewards are tangible incentives given to you for completing a task or excelling in an activity. These rewards, such as money, praise, or awards, come from an outside source.
Performance-contingent rewards, a subset of external rewards, are given specifically when you achieve a predefined level of performance. They are crucial in sales or employee incentive frameworks, and are often used with the idea that they direct behaviour towards the desired outcome.
These kinds of rewards can significantly boost your performance by providing a clear, tangible goal. However, some studies (see below) suggest that they can also undermine intrinsic motivation in the long run, especially if they are expected or become the sole focus of a person’s efforts.
The key is to use external rewards in a way that supports rather than diminishes the internal drive of the individual concerned.
Research insights
The research provides us with a more nuanced insight into the impact of external rewards.
These are the key insights:
Monetary rewards and intrinsic motivation:
Monetary rewards tend to decrease intrinsic motivation. This is because monetary rewards are often perceived as controlling, which can undermine the intrinsic enjoyment of the task (see references 1, 2, 8 and 9 below).
Small rewards and intrinsic motivation:
Small rewards can enhance autonomous motivation, at least in a learning environment. The award of bonus points increased persistence in rewarded behaviour, as well as persistence and performance in non-rewarded behaviour. This was because the feedback from being rewarded outweighed the controlling nature of the rewards themselves (see reference 11 below).
Verbal rewards and positive feedback:
Verbal reinforcement and positive feedback generally enhance intrinsic motivation. These types of rewards are perceived as supportive and affirming, which can increase the intrinsic value of the task (see references 1, 2, 5, 8 and 9 below).
Timing of rewards:
Immediate external rewards can enhance intrinsic motivation more effectively than delayed rewards. This suggests that the timing of the reward plays a crucial role in its impact on motivation (see reference 3 below).
Type of reward and age differences:
Tangible rewards (e.g., money, prizes) are more detrimental to intrinsic motivation in children compared to college students. Conversely, verbal rewards are less effective in enhancing intrinsic motivation in children than in college students (see reference 2 below)
Performance-contingent rewards:
Performance-contingent rewards can both improve and undermine motivation and performance. While some studies suggest that these rewards improve performance, others indicate they can undermine intrinsic motivation depending on the context and individual differences (see references 4 and 6 below).
Interaction of external and internal factors:
The interaction between external rewards and internal factors (e.g., satiation level) can influence motivation. For instance, larger rewards and shorter delays to rewards increase motivation, but this effect diminishes as satiation increases (see reference 7 below).
So, in summary, the impact of external rewards on intrinsic motivation is complex and varies depending on the type of reward, timing, and individual differences.
Monetary rewards generally decrease intrinsic motivation, while verbal rewards and positive feedback tend to enhance it.
Immediate rewards are more effective than delayed ones in boosting intrinsic motivation.
Additionally, the detrimental effects of tangible rewards are more pronounced in children, whereas verbal rewards are more beneficial for older individuals.
Performance-contingent rewards have mixed effects, largely dependent on how they land with the individuals concerned. For some people, they are rocket fuel and for others, they are a turn-off. So it is important to consider the context and individuals involved to fully understand what impact these rewards might have on motivation.
My other posts on motivation can be found here.
References
Deci, E. (1971). Effects of Externally Mediated Rewards on Intrinsic Motivation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 18, 105-115. https://doi.org/10.1037/H0030644.
Deci, E., Koestner, R., & Ryan, R. (1999). A meta-analytic review of experiments examining the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. Psychological bulletin, 125 6, 627-68; discussion 692-700 . https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.125.6.627.
Liu, Y., Yang, Y., Bai, X., Chen, Y., & Mo, L. (2022). Do Immediate External Rewards Really Enhance Intrinsic Motivation?. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.853879.
Hendijani, R., Bischak, D., Arvai, J., & Dugar, S. (2016). Intrinsic motivation, external reward, and their effect on overall motivation and performance. Human Performance, 29, 251 - 274. https://doi.org/10.1080/08959285.2016.1157595.
Cameron, J. (1994). Reinforcement, Reward, and Intrinsic Motivation: A Meta-Analysis. Review of Educational Research, 64, 363 - 423. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543064003363.
Levine, F., Broderick, J., & Burkart, M. (1983). Attribution and contrast: Two explanations for the effects of external rewards on intrinsic motivation. British Journal of Psychology, 74, 461-466. https://doi.org/10.1111/J.2044-8295.1983.TB01878.X.
Minamimoto, T., Camera, G., & Richmond, B. (2009). Measuring and modelling the interaction among reward size, delay to reward, and satiation level on motivation in monkeys. Journal of neurophysiology, 101 1, 437-47 . https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.90959.2008.
Albrecht, K., Abeler, J., Weber, B., & Falk, A. (2014). The brain correlates of the effects of monetary and verbal rewards on intrinsic motivation. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2014.00303.
Deci, E. (1972). Intrinsic motivation, Extrinsic Reinforcement, and Inequity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 22, 113-120. https://doi.org/10.1037/H0032355.
Black, S., & Allen, J. (2018). Part 7: Rewards, Motivation, and Performance. The Reference Librarian, 59, 205 - 218. https://doi.org/10.1080/02763877.2018.1499164.
Garaus, C., Furtmüller, G., & Güttel, W. H. (2016). The hidden power of small rewards: The effects of insufficient external rewards on autonomous motivation to learn. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 15(1), 45-59.