Motivations are often conceived of as a cycle within which thoughts influence behaviors, drive performance affects thoughts, and also the cycle begins again. Each stage of the cycle consists of the many dimensions including attitudes, beliefs, intentions, effort, and withdrawal, which might all affect the motivation that personal experiences. Most psychological theories hold that motivation exists purely within the individual, but socio-cultural theories express motivation as an outcome of participation in actions and activities within the cultural context of social groups.
Motivation can be further divided into two different types.
- Intrinsic Motivation
- Extrinsic Motivation
Both kinds of motivation take part equally in the day-to-day life of an individual, and there are basic similarities and differences between the two.
Intrinsic Motivation: Intrinsic motivation means the individual’s motivational stimuli are coming from within. The individual has the will to perform a selected task because its results are in accordance along with his/her belief system or fulfill a desire and thus importance is attached to it.
Research has shown that praise increases intrinsic motivation, so does positive employee feedback. But it should all be done in moderation. If we overdo any of these, there are high chances that the individual loses motivation.
The needs or causes that lead to intrinsic motivation are:
- Autonomy: the need to have complete control over one’s own life.
- Relatedness: the need to maintain companionship or connection with others.
- Competence: the need to do be the best and/or succeed.
Intrinsic incentives are hard to work. In a very class or workplace, different individuals will/might require different approaches. Fostering intrinsic motivation is a lengthy process, requiring special treatment. Intrinsic Motivation lasts for extended periods and infrequently results in a higher level of success.
Intrinsic motivation comes from one’s desire to realize or attain a goal. Pursuing challenges and goals come easier and more enjoyable when one is intrinsically motivated to complete a specific objective because the individual is more curious about learning, instead of achieving the goal. An advantage (relative to extrinsic motivation) is that intrinsic motivators may be long-lasting, self-sustaining, and satisfying. Intrinsic motivators are suggested to involve increased feelings of reward and thus may support subjective well-being.
Extrinsic Motivation: Extrinsic motivation means the individual’s motivational stimuli are coming from outside. In other words, our desires to perform a task are controlled by an out of doors source. Note that while the stimuli are coming from outside, the results of performing the task will still be rewarding for the individual performing the task.
Usually, extrinsic motivation is used to attain outcomes that a person wouldn’t get from intrinsic motivation. Common extrinsic motivations are rewards (for example money or grades) for showing the desired behavior and the threat of punishment following misbehavior.
Extrinsic motivation is external in nature. The most well-known and most debated motivation is money. The needs or causes that lead to extrinsic motivation (and not limited to) are:
- Money
- Praise
- Competition
- The threat of a punishment
Extrinsic Motivation often occurs instantly as soon because the subject understands the perks of performing certain actions. It’d only occur for a limited period of our time, and also the individual stops performing actions after the punishment or reward is applied. Extrinsic incentives will be accustomed to motivate an entire group, thus increasing productivity within the workplace or creating a better learning environment in classrooms.
The simplest distinction between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation is the type of reasons or goals that lead to action. While intrinsic motivation refers to doing something because it is inherently interesting or enjoyable and satisfying, extrinsic motivation refers to doing something because it leads to a separable outcome. Extrinsic motivation thus contrasts with intrinsic motivation, which is doing an activity simply for the enjoyment of the activity itself, instead of for its instrumental value.
Both Intrinsic and Extrinsic motivation have their own sets of advantages and disadvantages. There’s no saying which among them is more beneficial because it largely depends on matters and also the individuals being motivated. The techniques applied are different, the time duration required for every type of motivation to kick in are different and then are the results. However, at the core, the foremost purpose of both varieties of motivation remains identical.
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