Intrinsic Motivational Orientation Research Articles

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivational Orientations in the Competitive Context: An Examination of Person–Situation Interactions

The current study examined Intrinsic Motivation Orientation and Extrinsic Motivation Orientation (Work Preference Inventory; Amabile, Hill, Hennessey, & Tighe, 1994) as potential trait-level moderators of the way Internet chess players responded to the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards of the chess games they played. On the basis of the defining characteristics of these 2 types of motivational orientations, we predicted that (a) Intrinsic Motivation Orientation would be associated with a stronger curvilinear relationship between challenge and enjoyment and (b) Extrinsic Motivation Orientation would be associated with a heightened affective responsivity to competitive outcome (i.e., winning vs. losing). Results supported the predictions. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Medical teachers' attitudes towards science and motivational orientation for medical research

Research is an important motivating factor for pursuing a career in academic medicine, but the relation between motivation and other factors involved in scientific research are not clear. To explore the motivational orientation for doing research and its relation with attitudes towards science and publication practice among members of faculty at a medical school. We used a Science Attitude Survey and the Work Preference Inventory (intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientation using 4 Likert-type scales of motivation, possible range 1-5) to survey two groups of teachers at the Zagreb University School of Medicine (n = 327, 66% response rate): professors, elected to tenure-track positions (n = 150), and instructor/research fellows working on or just completing their thesis (n = 177). Overall, teachers scored highest on the Enjoyment subscale of intrinsic motivational orientation (mean score +/- standard deviation 4.3 +/- 0.42 for professors vs 4.1 +/- 0.42 for instructors/research fellows, P = 0.001, t-test). Professors also scored higher than instructors/research fellows on the Challenge subscale of intrinsic motivational orientation (3.8 +/- 0.55 vs. 3.5 +/- 0.64, P < 0.001, t-test), whereas instructors/research fellows scored higher on the Compensation subscale of extrinsic motivational orientation (3.5 +/- 0.74 vs. 3.1 +/- 0.71, P < 0.001, t-test). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the number of publications was positively associated with scores on the Science Attitude Survey and the Challenge subscale of intrinsic motivation, and negatively associated with scores on the Compensation subscale of extrinsic motivation. Members of the medical faculty differ in motivational orientation for research depending on their academic status, and their motivation is associated more with requirements for academic advancement than with research. These findings have important implications for developing strategies for enhancing academic research production.

Within-year changes in children’s intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations: Contextual predictors and academic outcomes

The present study was designed to investigate the nature, timing, and correlates of motivational change among a large sample ( N = 1051) of third- through eighth-grade students. Analyses of within-year changes in students’ motivational orientations revealed that both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations decreased from fall to spring, with declines in intrinsic motivation especially pronounced for the adolescents and declines in extrinsic motivation especially pronounced for the elementary students. These changes in motivation were explained, in part, by shifts in students’ perceptions of the school goal context. Findings suggested that typical age-related declines in intrinsic motivation may be minimized by a school-wide focus on mastery goals. Finally, the potential academic consequences of students’ motivational orientations were examined with a series of hierarchical multiple regressions. Intrinsic motivation and classroom achievement appeared to influence one another in a positive and reciprocal fashion. Poor classroom performance minimally predicted higher levels of extrinsic motivation, but extrinsic motivation was not a source of low classroom grades.

Intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivational orientations and the volunteer process

The present study incorporated the constructs of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation into an investigation of dispositional factors that contribute to volunteering. Recent research has conceptualized motivational tendencies as akin to personality variables, stable across time and situations. Volunteer motives, volunteer role identity, and prosocial personality were assessed, along with motivational orientation and time devoted to volunteering. Intrinsic motivation was positively associated with a volunteer self-concept, prosocial personality, volunteer time, and motive strength. This was particularly true for “internal” motives, those that are satisfied by the volunteer activity itself. Extrinsic orientation was most closely associated with “external” motives (specifically career aspirations), which require an outcome separate from the volunteer work in order to be fulfilled. The study was the first to consider constructs from the prevailing conceptual view of the volunteer process in the context of motivational orientation. The wider theoretical perspective offers insight into human behavior beyond volunteerism.

Values and Creativity

ABSTRACT Does extrinsic motivation inhibit or foster creativity? Whereas previous researchers examined the effects of externally controlled extrinsic motivation on creativity, we focus on the effects of self-determined extrinsic motivation arising from one's personally held core values. In this study, we present a theoretical argument which predicts that (a) creative behavior is fostered by certain value types, inhibited by other value types, and holistically related to the total integrative-dynamic pattern of value types identified by Schwartz (1994), and (b) creative performance is synergistically promoted by the interaction between the Self-Direction value type and intrinsic motivational orientation. These hypotheses were tested in a study of 248 undergraduates whose value priorities and intrinsic motivational orientation were measured by self-report and whose creative performance was assessed across multiple tasks in the verbal, artistic, and mathematical domains. All predictions were supported.

Boredom in Free Time: Relationships with Personality, Affect, and Motivation for Different Gender, Racial and Ethnic Student Groups

The propensity to experience boredom in free time was investigated by exploring relationships with the individual's demographic characteristics, personality, motivational orientation, and affective style assessed through group-administered questionnaires to 999 university students. The self-as-entertainment personality attribute consistently predicted the likelihood that students would be bored, and inverse relationships with extraversion and intrinsic motivational orientation were found for all student groups. Multiple regression analyses revealed that race, ethnicity, and gender were the only significant demographic predictors of the likelihood an individual would be bored in free time. Group similarities and differences in depicting students who were prone to experience boredom in free time are described.

Parental Predictors of Motivational Orientation in Early Adolescence: A Longitudinal Study

Using latent variable path analysis with partial least squares (LVPLS), the study examines the pathways between parenting practices and children's motivational orientation toward school work over the transition to middle school. Greater external control and lack of guidance by parents in the 5th-grade year were related to children's poorer academic achievement that year, which in turn predicted a more extrinsic motivational orientation in 7th grade. In contrast, greater parental autonomy-supporting behavior in the 5th-grade year was related to children's higher academic achievement that year, which in turn predicted a more intrinsic motivational orientation in 7th grade. In all instances, children's perceptions of their academic competence mediated the relation between 5th-grade academic performance and 7th-grade motivational orientation.

Basic needs and the development of interest and intrinsic motivational orientations

From the perspective of the “person–object-theory of interest” (POI) the development of interest and interest-related motivational orientations can be explained at the level of functional principles by referring to a dual regulation system that consists of both, cognitive–rational and partly subconscious emotional control mechanisms. Within this regulation system, emotional experiences related to the fulfillment of three basic needs (competence, autonomy, and relatedness) are presumed to play a crucial role. In the first part of this paper the basic ideas of this theoretical approach are explicated considering related concepts and models in other fields of educational and psychological research. In the second part exemplary research approaches and empirical results in the area of vocational education are presented referring to the question whether or not need-related experiences have an effect on the development of vocation-related interests and intrinsic motivational orientations. In final section some consequences for the direction of future research are discussed.

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivational Orientations in the Classroom: Age Differences and Academic Correlates.

Age differences in intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and the relationships of each to academic outcomes were examined in an ethnically diverse sample of 797 3rd-grade through 8th-grade children. Using independent measures, the authors found intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to be only moderately correlated, suggesting that they may be largely orthogonal dimensions of motivation in school. Consistent with previous research, intrinsic motivation showed a significant linear decrease from 3rd grade through 8th grade and proved positively correlated with children’s grades and standardized test scores at all grade levels. Extrinsic motivation showed few differences across grade levels and proved negatively correlated with academic outcomes. Surprisingly few differences based on children’s sex or ethnicity were found. Causes and consequences of the disturbingly low levels of motivation for older, relative to younger, children are discussed.

A motivação de alunos no contexto da progressão continuada

Este trabalho teve como objetivo investigar as orientações motivacionais intrínsecas e extrínsecas de alunos no contexto da progressão continuada. A amostra foi composta de 160 estudantes de 2ª, 4ª, 6ª e 8ª séries do ensino fundamental. Os dados foram coletados mediante a apresentação de duas pranchas com histórias envolvendo a motivação intrínseca, extrínseca e a progressão continuada. Os participantes foram entrevistados individualmente. As respostas foram transcritas na íntegra e submetidas à análise de conteúdo. Os resultados indicaram que uma porcentagem expressiva de estudantes não conhecem o sistema de progressão continuada. Quanto à motivação para estudar, mesmo sabendo que não irão repetir de ano, os alunos apresentaram uma orientação motivacional predominantemente intrínseca com o avançar da idade e da escolaridade. Conclui-se pela importância do aprofundamento dos conhecimentos acerca do impacto da progressão continuada na motivação para aprender dos alunos.

The Role of Contextual Conditions of Vocational Education for Motivational Orientations and Emotional Experiences

This article is concerned with the role of contextual conditions on motivational orientations and emotional experiences within the German Dual System of vocational education (VE). In our research approach we differentiate between three exemplary levels and meanings of context: educational setting, learning arrangement, and learning situation. Prior research in Germany has focused primarily on the analyses of differential motivational conditions and effects in two main educational settings: vocational school and training in companies. In a study in the educational setting of a company we tried to analyze the relation among contextual aspects at the level of learning arrangements and learning situations, intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations, and a selected set of emotional experiences. We used a variety of different methodological approaches including video-based observations, and the experience-sampling method (ESM). Comparing the indicators of extrinsic and intrinsic motivational orientations between the two main learning arrangements (training at the workplace and lessons about vocational knowledge), we found significant differences only for interest orientation (not for achievement orientation) and for exemplary indicators of a positive emotional experiences (feelings of being interested and feelings of being committed). Contrary to our theoretical expectations, the measures indicating the quality of emotional experiences with respect to the postulated system of basic needs (competence, autonomy, relatedness) did not vary systematically with the contextual conditions under consideration.

Motivational influences on computer-related affective states

Previous studies have established the importance of computer-related affective variables in predicting user satisfaction, frequency of use, and students academic performance. This study examined the effects of motivation to learn to use computers, and previous experience with computers on three computer-related affective states: anxiety, attitudes, and self-efficacy. Participants included 59 male and 52 female university and college students enrolled in introductory computer programming and fundamental courses. Gender differences were found in previous experience with computers, as well as most of the motivation, and all of the affective variables. A path analysis was used to further investigate these relations and to examine their effect on academic performance in introductory computer classes. Results supported the theoretical model, with some modifications. Gender differences in structure were negligible. Finally, students were grouped according to reasons for taking the course: intrinsic, extrinsic, or both. Significant differences among the three groups were found for six of the 10 variables, in all cases favoring an intrinsic motivational orientation.

Achievement Motivation and Type A Behavior as Motivational Orientations

This study investigated the relationships among achievement motivation, Type A behavior, and motivational orientation in a sample of college undergraduates. Employing a content analytic scoring system to assess intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations in open-ended material, intrinsic orientation was associated with achievement motivation and extrinsic orientation with Type A behavior. Supplementary analyses revealed a linkage between Type A behavior and instrumental concerns about interpersonal superiority and prestige. The findings help to bridge previously disparate research traditions in dispositional achievement behavior and contextual motivational orientation.

Perceptions of Teachers’ Communicative Style and Students’ Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

This study considers how students’ perceptions of their teachers’ communicative style, particularly the extent to which teachers are perceived to support students’ autonomy and to provide useful feedback about students’ learning progress, are related to students’ extrinsic and intrinsic motivational orientations. It also examines the link between these variables and various language learning outcomes, including effort, anxiety, and language competence. Students registered in a summer French immersion course (N = 78) completed a questionnaire that was used to assess the constructs described above. Correlational analyses determined that stronger feelings of intrinsic motivation were related to positive language learning outcomes, including greater motivational intensity, greater self‐evaluations of competence, and a reduction in anxiety. Moreover, perceptions of the teacher’s communicative style were related to intrinsic motivation, such that the more controlling and the less informative students perceived the teacher to be, the lower students’ intrinsic motivation was. The implications of perceptions of teacher communicative style for motivation and language learning outcomes are discussed.

Fostering Intrinsic Motivation in Early Childhood Classrooms

Young children are born with an innate curiosity to learn about their world. This intrinsically instigated learning is often called mastery motivation. Patterns of motivation are established at an early age. The early childhood years are crucial for establishing robust intrinsic motivational orientations which will last a lifetime. By the time many children reach school, much of their motivation has been lost or replaced with extrinsically motivated learning strategies. Preschools and elementary schools have been criticized for contributing to such negative motivational patterns in children. This can be changed. Early child care situations and preschools can instead be instrumental in the strengthening of children's motivation. The goal of this paper is to show that through an understanding of the beginnings of motivation, we can begin to find ways to build strong motivational patterns in children that can carry on to later years of learning.

"The Work Preference Inventory: Assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations": Correction.

"The Work Preference Inventory: Assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations": Correction.

"The Work Preference Inventory: Assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations": Correction.

"The Work Preference Inventory: Assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations": Correction.

The Work Preference Inventory: assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations.

The Work Preference Inventory (WPI) is designed to assess individual differences in intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations. Both the college student and the working adult versions aim to capture the major elements of intrinsic motivation (self-determination, competence, task involvement, curiosity, enjoyment, and interest) and extrinsic motivation (concerns with competition, evaluation, recognition, money or other tangible incentives, and constraint by others). The instrument is scored on two primary scales, each subdivided into 2 secondary scales. The WPI has meaningful factor structures, adequate internal consistency, good short-term test-retest reliability, and good longer term stability. Moreover, WPI scores are related in meaningful ways to other questionnaire and behavioral measures of motivation, as well as personality characteristics, attitudes, and behaviors.

Family Factors Related to Children's Intrinsic/Extrinsic Motivational Orientation and Academic Performance

This study examined 3 familial factors--parental surveillance of homework, parental reactions to grades, and general family style--in relation to children's motivational orientation and academic performance. Family, parent, and child measures were obtained in the home from 93 fifth graders and their parents. Teachers provided a measure of classroom motivational orientation, and grades and achievement scores were obtained from school records. Higher parental surveillance of homework, parental reactions to grades that included negative control, uninvolvement, or extrinsic reward, and over- and undercontrolling family styles were found to be related to an extrinsic motivational orientation and to lower academic performance. On the other hand, parental encouragement in response to grades children received was associated with an intrinsic motivational orientation, and autonomy-supporting family styles were associated with intrinsic motivation and higher academic performance. In addition, socioeconomic level was a significant predictor of motivational orientation and academic performance.

Refining the Nomological Net of the Adult Playfulness Scale: Personality, Motivational, and Attitudinal Correlates for Highly Intelligent Adults

This study extends the nomological net of the 1992 Adult Playfulness Scale of Glynn and Webster by examining concurrent validity using a sample of 550 highly intelligent adults. Playfulness correlated positively with innovative attitudes, intrinsic motivational orientation, and negatively with personal orderliness. Playfulness did not correlate with gender or social desirability and had a low correlation with age. These findings extend the validity of the scale and suggest its applicability for different subgroups of employees in the workplace.