Motivation can be defined as what drives us to do something. We could say that it refers to all those hopes, desires and aspirations that each human being has. Through their study, many authors have tried to define what conditions exist within the human being, the environment that surrounds him and his culture, that can explain why we want what we want and why we do what we do.
Therefore we can say that motivation refers to all those processes that give our behavior energy and direction. When we see that a behavior has intensity, that it is strong and that it is resistant, we intuit that it is a behavior motivated to achieve an objective, a goal. However, within motivation different types can be differentiated. Today, in Psychology-Online, we are going to focus on extrinsic motivation, its definition, characteristics and examples.
What is extrinsic motivation in psychology: definition
External events are environmental, social and cultural sources of motivation that have the capacity to energize and direct behavior.
The external event acquires the capacity to energize and direct behavior to the extent that it indicates that a behavior will have the possibility of producing reward or punishment consequences. As we can see in the theory of . Thus, external incentives precede behavior and attract approach behavior or drive avoidance behavior.
Examples of extrinsic motivation
Extrinsic motivation is that which comes from the incentives and consequences that the environment provides us, such as food, money, privileges, scholarships, trophies, points, prizes, public recognition, etc
Instead of participating or performing an action to experience the inherent satisfactions derived from it, it is performed by the “external” consequences that are obtained when doing it.
You could say that when a person asks themselves “what did I gain?” Before performing an action and you see that you can obtain an attractive environmental incentive, extrinsic motivation is what will encourage you to initiate and persist in performing said action.
Difference between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation
Contrary to extrinsic motivation, it is that which drives human beings to engage in an action to exercise their own capabilities and master optimal challenges. That is, this type of motivation appears spontaneously as a result of the psychological needs of human beings to satisfy their own interest which is not related to any instrumental reason.
Intrinsic motivation appears in people as a result of the psychological needs that they have within themselves and that, once satisfied, give rise to a personal satisfaction. They usually arise from spontaneous experiences that people have of feeling autonomous, competent, or related to others.
The pursuit of intrinsic goals leads to better functioning and greater psychological well-being in humans.
Characteristics of extrinsic motivation
The extrinsic motivation It is determined by the incentives, reinforcers and punishments that can be obtained from the environment that surrounds human beings.
Extrinsic motivation cannot exist without a incentive that precedes the behavior. These might be a smile, an inviting aroma, a sound, a bad smell, a squeak, etc. All of them create in the person who experiences them an expectation that a consequence will occur soon, which can be either positive or negative. We must not confuse the incentive with the consequence, since the first precedes the behavior and incites or inhibits itwhile the consequences are subsequent to these and what they do is increase or reduce their persistence.
Regarding reinforcers, these are any extrinsic factors that increase an individual’s behavior. They can be classified into positive reinforcers which increase the probability future of a behavior being performed. For example, get a trophy It will act as a positive reinforcer so that the individual strives and trains even more in order to repeat the behavior of participating in the competition and obtaining a new trophy.
On the other hand, we find the negative reinforcers, which are any stimulus that, when removed, increases the probability of performing a behavior in the future. These are usually aversive and irritating, so the person is motivated to make them disappear. An example could be listen to the alarm clock in the morning. Stopping the noise produced by this may result in the subject getting out of bed.
Lastly, we must make reference to the punishments, which are any environmental stimulus that, when it appears, tends to reduce the probability that an undesirable behavior will be carried out. This type of motivation is used by many parents to educate their children so that they do not perform certain behaviors. For example, if a child fails an exam for not studying and is punishes without being able to watch televisionthis will make the child study to pass the next exam and thus not be punished.
Types of extrinsic motivation
Extrinsic motivation can be divided into four subtypes depending on the degree of autonomy required from the subject.
- External regulation: no autonomy. Its regulatory processes are obedience, rewards and external punishments.
- Introjected regulation: somewhat autonomous. Its regulatory processes are the ego, the participation of the self, and internal rewards and punishments.
- Identified regulation: mainly autonomous. Its regulatory processes are personal importance and conscious appraisal.
- Integrated regulation: completely autonomous. Its regulatory processes are congruence, awareness and synthesis with oneself.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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Bibliography
- Moltó, J. (2016). Motivation and emotion. Jaume I University.
- Reeve, J., Raven, AML, & i Besora, MV (1994). Motivation and emotion. Madrid: McGraw-Hill.