Intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation: "doing something b/c it is inherently interesting or enjoyable." Extrinsic motivation: doing something b/c of its instrumental value. ("When intrinsically motivated a person is moved to act for the fun or challenge entailed rather than because of external prods, pressures, or rewards.")
Intrinsic motivation can be increased by increasing feelings of competence and autonomy. SDT focuses on our innate needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Cognitive Evaluation Theory (CET), a branch of SDT, holds that intrinsic motivation can be enhanced if we bring about feelings of competence and autonomy. (Feelings of competence can be conduced by providing positive feedback, by restraining from demeaning evaluations, etc.) Research:
Several early studies showed that positive performance feedback enhanced intrinsic motivation (e.g.,Deci,1971; Harackiewicz,1979), whereas negative performance feedback diminished it (e.g., Deci & Cascio, 1972). Others (e.g., Vallerand & Reid, 1984) showed that perceived competence mediated these effects, and still others supported the hypothesis that increases in perceived competence must be accompanied by a sense of autonomy in order for the enhanced feelings of competence to result in increased intrinsic motivation(Ryan,1982).
Extrinsic motivation is not all bad. It's not possible to always have intrinsic motivation, as many of the things we need to do in life are not inherently interesting or enjoyable. The authors argue that there are different types of extrinsic motivation, the most effective types being largely autonomous. They put the different types of human motivation on a continuum. On the far left end of the continuum is Amotivation, where one has no intention to act. On the far right is Intrinsic Motivation, where one is doing what they want to do and what they enjoy doing. In the middle are four different types of Extrinsic Motivation. Those driven by External Regulation are acting to meet external demands or to earn a reward. Those driven by Introjection are acting to avoid feeling guilty or to boost their self-esteem. Those driven by Identification and Integration have come to identify with the importance of the behavior, valuing it for its ability to help them achieve their life goals.
The further right one moves along the continuum, the more autonomy they have, meaning they're not performing the behavior because they feel pressured to do so but because they've internalized that behavior and have "inwardly grasp[ed] its meaning and worth."
Competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Autonomy is important. Studies have shown that "more autonomous extrinsic motivation is associated with greater engagement (Connell & Wellborn, 1990), better performance (Miserandino, 1996), less dropping out (Vallerand & Bis-sonnette,1992), higher quality learning (Grolnick&Ryan, 1987), and greater psychological well-being (Sheldon & Kasser, 1995), among other outcomes."
Relatedness is also important:
Because extrinsically motivated behaviors are not inherently interesting and thus must initially be externally prompted, the primary reason people are likely to be willing to do the behaviors is that they are valued by significant others to whom they feel (or would like to feel) connected,whether that be a family, a peer group, or a society. This suggests that the groundwork for facilitating internalization is providing a sense of belongingness and connectedness to the persons,group, or culture disseminating a goal, or what in SDT we call a sense of relatedness. In classrooms this means that students’ feeling respected and cared for by the teacher is essential for their willingness to accept the proffered classroom values. In support o fthis, Ryan, Stiller, and Lynch (1994) found that relatedness to teachers (and parents) was associated with greater internalization of school-related behavioral regulations.
But doing something because you want to feel connect to others is not enough, as this type of motivation will not leave one feeling self-determined. Therefore, it's also important to help one to internalize the value of the behavior and thus gain some autonomy. "Deci, Eghrari, Patrick, and Leone (1994) experimentally demonstrated that providing a meaningful rationale for an uninteresting behavior, along with supports for autonomy and relatedness, promoted internalization and integration."
Finally, competence is important, as "[a]dopting as one’s own an extrinsic goal requires that one feel efficacious with respect to it. Students will more likely adopt and internalize a goal if they understand it and have the relevant skills to succeed at it."
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