Extrinsic motivation: characteristics and examples

All people act for and for something. No one acts in vain; There is always a motivation behind behavior that explains and justifies our actions.. Furthermore, there are different types of motivation; A possible classification is the one that differentiates extrinsic motivation from intrinsic motivation.

In this article we will focus on extrinsic motivation. What does this concept refer to? What are their characteristics? What examples do we know of it? How is it different from intrinsic motivation? Discover all the answers in relation to this very interesting concept of basic psychology.

Extrinsic motivation: what is it?

Extrinsic motivation has received multiple definitions. In a generic way, we could say that It is about the motivation that is given by factors external to the activity itself. That is, the person would perform a certain action to achieve something “external” to the action (it does not have to be money or a material object, it can also be the obtaining of an internal state, such as tranquility), not for the pleasure of the activity itself.

Thus, through extrinsic motivation, the individual seeks to achieve something with his or her efforts or actions (for example, a prize, an external reward, praise…). In other words: the reinforcement or incentive that motivates the action (whether positive or negative) is external and is also outside the person’s control. However, it has more features that we will learn about below.

Characteristics of extrinsic motivation

What are the fundamental characteristics of extrinsic motivation? What happens so that we can talk about this type of motivation? When can it be a problem? Let’s see it.

May reduce intrinsic motivation

It has been proven how extrinsic motivation can reduce intrinsic motivation. The latter consists of that motivation that we have for the action itself; That is, we enjoy the action itself, and that is what moves us to carry it out. For example, it would be going skating for the simple pleasure of doing it; Here there are no external incentives that move us to act.

Why do we say that extrinsic motivation can reduce intrinsic motivation? Because this has been proven through different investigations. Think wisely; Imagine that you like to read. However, your father, with the intention of rewarding your passion or encouraging it even more, tells you that he will give you 10 euros for each book you read.

How will this ad influence your reading? Perhaps you begin to change the way you read, reading faster or selecting shorter books -regardless of their subject matter-, to maximize the benefit of the activity, “putting aside” or “forgetting” what you started reading for, which was the passion to do it (intrinsic motivation). This is just an example, but it can be applied to many more skills.

It can appear together with intrinsic motivation

Now that we have seen what intrinsic motivation consists of, we are going to talk about its joint appearance; and it is that Both motivations, intrinsic and extrinsic, can appear at the same time. An example of this would be: studying because we like to do it (intrinsic motivation) and at the same time because our parents reward us with praise for doing it (extrinsic motivation).

That is, they are not incompatible motivations. However, it often happens that one of them predominates over the other (or appears to a greater degree).

It motivates us to do things we like

Another characteristic of extrinsic motivation is that it motivates us to do things we like, to do pleasant things. Although we perform the action to achieve something, that action can also be pleasant and positive. In the end, let’s not forget, Motivation is a force that drives us to perform certain actionsbe it intrinsic or extrinsic.

Works with internal and external factors

Although it seems that extrinsic motivation only appears due to external factors, this is not the case; We can also have extrinsic motivation for something internal (for example, having the motivation to lose weight by doing sports or feeling relaxed by doing meditation…). We will see this and other examples below.

Examples of extrinsic motivation

An example of extrinsic motivation would be receiving a salary for working and if said salary were our motivation to go to work (or one of them). But there are many more: for example, children who study because their parents promise them an external reward for getting good grades (for example, a bicycle, going to a concert, a trip…) or those people who expect a word of gratitude or praise when doing something. a certain action.

As we are seeing, Examples of extrinsic motivation can appear in practically any field of our lives.: in the field of sports, if we practice sports to lose weight; In the workplace, if we work hard to get a promotion; On a personal level, if we take care of our friends to feel valued later by our friends, etc. If we look at our daily lives, we are sure to find multiple examples!

Motivation: that force that moves us

Whether intrinsic or extrinsic, the reality is that behind every human behavior there is a motivation (or more than one). No one acts in a certain way “just because.” This is partly what the self-determination theory talks about, which was proposed by researchers Edward L. Decy and Richard M. Ryan and which suggests that people are motivated to grow and change by innate psychological needs.

According to this theory, there would be three types of psychological needs (innate and universal): the need for competence, the need for connection and the need for autonomy. So, we all act for some reason, even if this reason is not always easy to identify.

On the other hand, motivations are sensitive to circumstances and undergo important changes throughout life. In the case of extrinsic motivation, it can increase if we increase external incentives (for example, increasing their quantity, quality, variety…), and also in other circumstances.

If we go to Intrinsic motivation, according to Good and Brophy (1996), will decrease if one’s feelings of competence and self-determination are reduced.. This produces two types of intrinsically motivated behavior: one occurs when the person is comfortable but bored and therefore seeks stimulation, and the other involves mastering challenges or reducing incongruence.

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