Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation

By J. Cameron, W. Pierce. 2002

192 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Over the past 30 years, many social psychologists have been critical of the practice of using incentive systems in business, education, and other applied settings. The concern is that money, high grades, prizes, and even praise may be effective in getting people to perform an activity but performance and interest are maintained only so long as the reward keeps coming. Once the reward is withdrawn, the concern is that individuals will enjoy the activity less, perform at a lower level, and spend less time on the task. The claim is that rewards destroy people's intrinsic motivation. Widely accepted, this view has been enormously influential and has led many employers, teachers, and other practitioners to question the use of rewards and incentive systems in applied settings. Contrary to this view, the research by Cameron and Pierce indicates that rewards can be used effectively to enhance interest and performance. The book centers around the debate on rewards and intrinsic motivation. Based on historical, narrative, and meta-analytic reviews, Cameron and Pierce show that, contrary to many claims, rewards do not have pervasive negative effects. Instead, the authors show that careful arrangement of rewards enhances motivation, performance, and interest. The overall goal of the book is to draw together over 30 years of research on rewards, motivation, and performance and to provide practitioners with techniques for designing effective incentive systems.

Subfields: Applied Psychology, Social Psychology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/e249f32a0b7e6028ccdcb548222cd49efd318241

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Citations in the corpus

Motivation in adult education: a problem solver or a euphemism for direction and control? (2006, background): “…laid the ground for contemporary theories about inner and outer motivation (Deci and Ryan 1985) and intrinsic and extrinsic rewards and how these rewards could be balanced to achieve optimal motivation (Frey 1997; Sansone and Harackiewicz 2000; Cameron and Pierce 2002; Frey and Osterloh 2002).”
From hardware and software to kernels and envelopes: a concept shift for robotics, developmental psychology, and brain sciences (2011, background): “However, this view is currently at the heart of many controversies (Cameron and Pierce, 2002).”
Achievement-Based Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation: A Test of Cognitive Mediators (2005, background): “Recent research has focused on identifying the moderating conditions under which external incentives are most effective and on factors that need to be considered when designing a successful incentive program (Cam- eron & Pierce, 2002; Sansone & Harackiewicz, 2000).”
Incremental effects of reward on experienced performance pressure: positive outcomes for intrinsic interest and creativity (2009, background): “Alternative meta-analyses assert that reward for enjoyable tasks either decreases intrinsic task interest (Deci et al., 1999) or has variable effects depending on the nature of the reward contingency (Cameron & Pierce, 2002; Eisenberger, Pierce, et al., 1999).”
Autonomy and task performance: Explaining the impact of grades on intrinsic motivation. (2013, background): “Cameron et al. (2001) and Cameron and Pierce (2002) again found a positive effect for task interest but a negative effect for FCTT.”
Toward Reduced Poverty Across Generations: Early Findings from New York City’s Conditional Cash Transfer Program (2010, background): “See, for example, Cameron and Pierce (2002). (54)For an example of contrasting views, see The Becker-Posner Blog, www.”
Ten Faulty Notions About Teaching and Learning That Hinder the Effectiveness of Special Education (2003, background): “(p. 55) A careful examination of the research conducted in both classrooms and the laboratory does not support Kohn’s contention that students are “punished by rewards” (Cameron, Banko, & Pierce, 2001; Cameron & Pierce, 1994, 1996, 2002).”
Positive Effects of Rewards and Performance Standards on Intrinsic Motivation (2003, background): “This lack of consistency between task interest and free-choice measures is a common finding of recent meta-analyses (Cameron et aI., 2001; Cameron & Pierce, 2002; Deci et aI., 1999).”
Employees' Behavior towards IS Security Policy Compliance (2007, background): “Sanctions are modified from [20] and Rewards are taken from [8].”
Which Factors Explain Employees' Adherence to Information Security Policies? An Empirical Study (2007, unknown): “Rewards can be tangible (e.g., money, gold stars, medals, and awards) or intangible (praise by peers) -the use of rewards is individual: what may work as reinforcement for one person may not work for another person (Cameron and Pierce 2002 p. 24).”