Intrinsic Versus Extrinsic Motivation

Motivation can be broken into two types, intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation is defined as motivation that is internal. This type of motivation drives you to succeed because it is something you enjoy doing, something you see the value in, and something that you see as good. Extrinsic motivation is defined as motivation that comes from an external source. This type of motivation is linked with money, fame, grades, and praise. While this type of motivation can lead to success on short term goals, it shouldn't be overused. This type of motivation does not yield life-long learners or encourage a love for learning, but rather the opposite. For parents, students, and educators who want to foster a love of learning and high achievement, motivation should center around intrinsic motivation instead of extrinsic motivation.

Gifted and talented students face obstacles with their natural motivation that differ from regular students. “Poor motivation among gifted students seems paradoxical since intrinsic motivation is considered a distinguishing characteristic of a gifted student” (Ford,1998, p.1). But, a study found that 20 to 50 percent of gifted students are underachievers. The reason for this is linked in a highly significant way to their motivation (Ford, 1998). This leads to the question: Why?

One answer as to why this is occurring is social pressure. “Gifted individuals are intensely interested in or passionate about their talent areas and willing to spend large amounts of time engaged in talent development activities” (Anderson & Cross, 2014, p.1). This is related to the value of the activity outweighing the cost of the activity. The value, in this case, being a high interest-enjoyment value. That said, a study was conducted that demonstrated that "none of the academically talented students where passionate about academics" (Anderson & Cross, 2014, p.1). It was determined that gifted students must often choose between academic achievement and social acceptance (Anderson & Cross, 2014). When a student is seen as gifted and talented, that student can sometimes feel ostracized from their peers for being different. In the classroom setting it is vital to these students that the social environment reflect a positive perception of academic achievement. While it is difficult to achieve this, it should be strived for. If this cannot be achieved, the educator should look for other ways to make sure that the gifted student is included and able to relate to their peers through other interests they may have.

Another reason gifted and talented students might not be succeeding in the classroom setting is linked to their interest in the curriculum. If the curriculum is not engaging, gifted students see no purpose for it (Ford,1998). If there is no purpose for it, why try? Gifted students need to be constantly challenged and engaged. If they are not, their giftedness might manifest itself in negative ways such as being distracted or unable to focus on the material. This could lead to behavior issues as time progresses. In these situations it is easy to blame the student for the behavior problems, instead of looking at the overarching issue that the student needs to be challenged and motivated. The question moves to: How do we keep our gifted and talented students engaged with the material and motivated?

Extrinsic motivation is an easy answer, but not the right answer. It can be seen as short-term effective. Pressure from parents and teachers is a type of extrinsic motivation. This can lead to a decreased interest and a dislike of school. This is not what should be strived for with children and students. A study was conducted on Chinese students where it was found that students who have high pressure from parents and teachers resulted in a solid basic knowledge however the students were lacking innovation and practical ability (Hu, Jia, & Plucker, 2016). This idea is linked to the concept that intrinsic motivation leads to creativity and extrinsic motivation is harmful to creativity. "For example, competitive pressures motivating gifted students to avoid challenging coursework for fear of lowering their grade point averages (extrinsic motivators) are detrimental to creativity (Amabile, 1983; Stipek, 1988). Curricula designed for gifted students should not rely on extrinsic rewards, but should be designed to allow the student to take responsibility for his or her own behavior and to explore and experiment with creativity" (Cropper,1998)

Lastly, another type of extrinsic motivation is competition. Competition is easy to implement in the classroom setting and appears to yield positive results as students work to win. However, a study found that continued competition could have negative effects even if a student continued to succeed in competition (Cropper, 1998). Long term competition is not something that should be used in the classroom as a motivator.

Intrinsic motivation is sometimes seen as a fragile commodity because some teachers feel that it is easily lost and difficult to gain. But, this is fundamentally important to having in the classroom because it fosters self-esteem and promotes enrichment (Lashaway-Bokina, 2000). Effective ways to foster intrinsic motivation in students are as follows:

1.Interest-based/ Student-centered learning

To motivate students, focus on their interests, interest-based learning and student-centered learning. “The most effective learning occurs when students are immersed in an activity in which they can make connections to prior knowledge and interests” (Ford, 1998, p.1).

2. Effective Competition

Organizing a debate program that emphasizes communication skills, allowing students to compete with themselves through individual record keeping, engaging in small group or team competition, allowing choices for participation in more than one competitive endeavor at a time, challenging students with complex curricula for stimulation of intrinsic motivation, providing an assessment system which rewards original, creative performance and thus encourages risk taking, allowing a meaningful degree of student participation in the competitive assessment process., providing adequate informational feedback for high-achieving students, and allowing students to meet and interact with other gifted students in academic g ame bowls and contests" (Cropper, 1998, p.1).

3. The Loop of Positivity

The authors conducted a study which overall found that intrinsic motivation influenced perceived competence and that perceived competence influenced academic achievement. The students in the study were 2nd and 3rd grade students. Students can be classified as being highly motivated when they enthusiastically pursue challenging learning activities on their own and do not rely on encouragement or rewards from external sources. In a study, private school students who were in a program that focused on intrinsic motivation did better and scored higher than students in traditional public schools. Children who have a positive self-concept of their abilities make greater achievement gains. Greater achievement gains lead them to develop more autonomous judgement. More autonomous judgement helps continue positively impacting self-concept. This creates a loop of positivity (Goldberg & Cornell, 1998).

References

Andersen, L., & Cross, T. L. (2014). Are students with high ability in math more motivated in

math and science than other students? Roeper Review, 36(4), 221. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/1617226141?accountid=12085

Cropper, C. (1998). Is competition an effective classroom tool for the gifted student?Gifted Child

Today Magazine, 21(3), 28. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://searchproquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/203253619?accountid=12085

Ford, D. Y., Alber, S. R., & Heward, W. L. (1998). Setting "motivation traps" for

underachieving gifted students. Gifted Child Today Magazine, 21(2), 28. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/203253752?accountid=12085

Goldberg, M. D., & Cornell, D. G. (1998, 01). The influence of intrinsic motivation and self-

concept on academic achievement in second- and third-grade students. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 21, 179-205. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1177/016235329802100204

Lashaway-Bokina, N. (2000). Recognizing and nurturing intrinsic motivation: A cautionary

tale. Roeper Review, 22(4), 225. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/206705802?accountid=12085