Module 5 · Motivation & mind · Evidence mixed

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation

Doing it because you want to, versus doing it for something else — and how rewards interact.

6 min read · Level: Intermediate · Free — no account needed to read

The problem it solves

Does it matter why you do a habit, as long as you do it?

The concept

Intrinsic motivation means doing something because you find it interesting or satisfying in itself. Extrinsic motivation means doing it for something separate from it: money, approval, avoiding guilt, a reward. Most real habits mix both.

Rewards are useful, especially early. But research on rewards for already-enjoyable activities found that expected, tangible rewards can reduce people’s interest afterwards, while positive feedback tends to increase it. Other researchers argue this effect is smaller and narrower.

A practical balance: use rewards to get a habit started or through dull stretches, and look for what could make the activity itself worth doing.

Why it matters

Understanding the mix helps you choose rewards that support a habit rather than replace your reasons for doing it.

Evidence mixed: Some studies support it and others do not, or early findings shrank when researchers tried to repeat them. The lesson explains both sides.

See it happen

Ayo pays himself a small amount for every piano practice. After a month he only practises for the money.

The ordinary first approach

The reward is working because he’s practising.

With the idea

He keeps a small reward for the hardest days but starts learning songs he genuinely loves playing.

What changed

The habit now has a reason inside the activity, not only outside it.

Easy to get wrong

• Assuming rewards always destroy motivation — they often help, especially for dull tasks.
• Relying on external rewards forever for something you could come to enjoy.
• Ignoring praise and feedback as a form of reward.

Different perspectives

Where the field genuinely disagrees. None of these is presented as the answer.

Rewards can undermine

A meta-analysis found expected, tangible rewards reduced interest in already-enjoyable activities.

Rewards mostly help

Other researchers argue the undermining effect is limited to narrow conditions, and that rewards are valuable for tasks people don’t yet enjoy.

Try it now: Find the inside reason

1. Pick one habit you do mainly for an outside reason.
2. Write one thing about the activity itself you do, or could, enjoy.
3. Change one detail to bring more of that into it.

Apply it to one of your habits

For one of your habits, what is the reason inside the activity, and what is the reason outside it?

Reflect

• Which of your habits would you keep even without any reward?

Go deeper — evidence & sources

• Deci, Koestner & Ryan (1999). A meta-analytic review of experiments examining the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. Psychological Bulletin. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.125.6.627
• Ryan & Deci (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68
• Woolley & Fishbach (2016). For the Fun of It: Harnessing Immediate Rewards to Increase Persistence in Long-Term Goals. Journal of Consumer Research. doi:10.1093/jcr/ucv098