Intrinsic motivation: what is it and how to promote it?

We explain the psychological basis of this type of motivation.

When we talk about motivation and, specifically, intrinsic motivation, the first thing we ask ourselves is: what drives people to act the way they do? what drives people to act the way they do?What makes a person persist in achieving a goal (such as passing a competitive examination) despite the Pain and effort involved? Why are some people able to persist in a task while others postpone it or start others at the same time without finishing any of them?

The study of intrinsic motivation is a topic in basic psychology.. We know that human beings act for reasons: either to get what they need (food, money, prestige...), or to avoid what they fear (obstacles, diseases, punishments...). In this article we will try to discover what it is and why it is so important.

A brief historical review of intrinsic motivation

In order to understand where the psychological construct of intrinsic motivation comes from, it is important to know what are the origins of this concept linked to the mental processes related to what motivates us.. These date back to times when psychology as a science did not even exist.

Motivation has been present in all ages. Plato already spoke of anger, courage, instincts, Aristotle mentioned goals, Epicurus focused on the search for pleasure and the escape from pain.

From the foundation of scientific psychology we remember McDougall (1908) who resorted to instincts as an explanation of behavior, and Freud (1910) with unconscious motivation. Although Watson's and Skinner's behaviorism did not deal with this subject, since they understood learning as the only motor of action, it was not until neobehaviorism, through Clark Hull (1943), saw that learning was not enough to perform a behavior.

It was not until the theories of personal causation in the 1970s (De Charms) and the theory of self-determination in the 1980s (Deci and Ryan) that we began to speak of intrinsic motivation.

What is intrinsic motivation?

Intrinsic motivation originates within the individual, and is driven by the needs for exploration, experimentation, curiosity and manipulation, which are considered motivational behaviors in themselves. In other words, intrinsic motivation is the type of motivation that is self-administered, and which predisposes the individual to strive to approach the attainment of a goal.

Intrinsic motivation, according to Deci, is an individual's underlying need for social competence and self-determination.. That is, those behaviors that are performed in the absence of any apparent external contingency are considered intrinsically motivated. The realization of the activity is an end in itself and its realization allows the subject to feel autonomous and competent, fundamental for the good development of healthy self-esteem.

We can all give some example of intrinsic motivation in our lives: participating in volunteering, altruistic acts, doing our job well, seeking more knowledge, self-improvement in the performance of a sport, doing hobbies...

In short, the motives that lead to the activation of a behavioral pattern are inherent to the person. External stimuli are not needed as in extrinsic motivation, but they are not mutually exclusive. That is, one can carry out an activity for which one is intrinsically motivated (helping others) but also obtain an external reward (money).

Unlike what is achieved with extrinsic motivation (external rewards), with intrinsic motivation we achieve experiences, feelings of efficacy and mastery of the task.. Three related feelings usually appear:

• Self-determination and autonomySelf-determination and autonomy: to be the directors of one's own life.
• Competence: to control what we do, to experience mastery of our abilities.
• Relationshipsinteracting, being connected and caring for others.
• Satisfaction in making something familiar and personal

At first it was thought that both types of motivation were independent, but Deci and Lepper showed that an activity that had a high intrinsic interest could be diminished if rewards were introduced, which they called the overjustification effect. Interestingly, the subject lost interest. The negative effect of reward is known as the hidden price of reward.

Which is better, intrinsic or extrinsic motivation?

We should clarify that neither extrinsic nor intrinsic motivation are "bad" per se, but will depend on how present they are in each person's life, the context of the person's life, and his or her psychological and personal situation.

Extrinsic motivation is externally driven, either by the force of reward or by the force of possible punishment (p. e.g., a student who starts studying the night before for fear of failing and having to pay a higher rate of academic credits).

In these cases, the subject can see himself doing something he does not like simply for the reward (think of all those people who do a job that does not intrinsically motivate them for the financial reward). This type of motivation is available in society as a whole, even the educational system is extrinsically motivated.. The great handicap of this motivation is that it cannot satisfy the need for self-determination.

This is why development and change from extrinsic to intrinsic is necessary, which is possible by making the subject reach levels of autonomy in the task he/she performs and by offering a context or environment that facilitates interpersonal relationships.

A very clear example of this last reflection is to start educating children by encouraging their autonomy and self-realization through the process itself (the intrinsic) instead of focusing only on extrinsic rewards/punishments for them to carry out the tasks. This is not so easy: when it comes to doing activities and setting them in motion, extrinsic motivation is often necessary to start routines, especially in children..... However, once they have been initiated and have been incorporated into the subject's routine, it would be that they are maintained by intrinsic motivation.

Thanks to Psychology we know that when motivation comes from within, it is able to make us tend to persevere in the task for longer; that is why it is so important to encourage it in processes such as studies, oppositions or high performance athletes. This is so, among other things, because being intrinsic does not depend so much on the situations that arise around us, and helps us to adapt to each situation and each obstacle.

On the other hand, it must be taken into account that there is no such thing as "pure" intrinsic motivationIt is always linked to events that occur around us. The fact that it is more useful to understand it as an element that occurs within the individual, rather than as something that comes from the outside, does not mean that in practice the individual and the environment are intimately related.

How is this type of motivation promoted?

We will base ourselves fundamentally on what Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory proposes. One of the fundamental objectives in moving from the extrinsic to the intrinsic is to focus on satisfying our needs for autonomy and self-determination.

In the workplace, thinking in terms of "I have to", "I should do..." leads us to feel overwhelmed, pressured, and to feel that we are full of imposed "mandatory" tasks. We feel tied down and, even if we are paid for these activities (which promotes extrinsic motivation), it may not be enough to feel good.

It is positive to try to let go of the backpack of "have to's and should's" and start thinking about "want to's". When we think about what we want to do we are satisfying our needs for autonomy and self-determination. Today in my work: do I want to feel that I have contributed something positive? do I want to feel that I have helped someone else? Do I want to feel satisfied for the effort I have made? Do I want to learn new things?

Then we can ask ourselves: "In order to achieve what I want to do, what can I do to achieve it? When we consider what we can do, we are encouraging the need to feel competent and in control of what we do, and we are putting ourselves in the driver's seat of our life. It is up to us to choose to do our job well, to choose to help someone else, to choose to seek more information to learn a little more....

Obviously, not in every situation we will be able to apply this change of perspective, but it can be useful to reflect on why we do things and how we can change those things that do not make us feel good and are modifiable.