Sometimes I wish I had a PhD in something so I could just say stuff and people would listen to me. Or at least quote me.
Dr. Steven Reiss, for example, suggests that there really is no such thing as intrinsic motivation. This comes in response to the research coming out which suggests that extrinsic motivators, while improving performance in the short run, decrease intrinsic motivation leading to decreased performance in the future. He also questions the validity of making “value judgments” such as that one type of motivation is better than another.
So I guess we are completely environmentally controlled. The more I thought about this, the more it made sense to me. And the more sense it made, the more I got that queezy feeling of cognitive dissonance that causes me to think that much more. I have seen extrinsic motivation work. I have seen the behavior of troubled children transformed due to effective and consistent use of of such motivators. Boys’ Town is a testament to this as is their Common Sense Parenting model which has been adopted by group home facilities and parent education facilities across the nation.
I guess I like to think backwards and turn things upside down, I don’t know. But somehow I got from there to wondering if there really was such a thing as extrinsic motivation at all. Isn’t it all intrinsic? In my last post on motivation, I decided (because it is my blog and I can quote myself as an authority on anything I want):
These are all internal desires strong enough to motivate a person to action. If I want a glass of milk, I will go get one. If I have to ask permission nicely to be granted this satiation of my thirst, I will do so. The existence of the milk and the offering of the milk did not motivate me…it was an internal desire that I was willing to exert some effort to meet.
Right now, I am thinking that the short-comings of extrinsic motivations is that we put far to much value on them. Schools are now offering cars to graduates based on academics and attendance. High-stakes testing is pushing educators to try to find more and more ways to motivate children, including merely paying them off for grades, as if it were their paycheck.
But I have not seen any of these programs turn out success stories like this:
–Bill Gates at the National Education Summit on High Schools
And these kids don’t get cars. They come in as “failures” of our public schools, are asked to work harder, prepare more and learn more than they ever have and they succeed. Why? It is not because of the extrinsic motivations. It is because teachers and staff take the time and energy to find out what each student’s internal motivations are and match an educational program specific to him. Education for these students is not passing a test to get a good grade and a free pizza at Pizza Hut. It is meaningful, relevant and personal.
This reminds me of the verse, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and he will not depart from it.” Each child is created with unique talents and abilities. We as parents have the difficult task of “learning to know” our children, discovering their God-given talents and interests and guiding them to see God’s plan for their lives. But if we are truly seeking the path that he should go and not the path that we would have him go, I think we might find that the issue of motivation becomes secondary.
education, homeschooling, home school, parenting, motivation
Principled Discovery is a place to stop and discuss news and information related to faith, family and particularly education. Pour yourself a cup of tea and join the conversation! 
You wrote; “Sometimes I wish I had a PhD in something so I could just say stuff and people would listen to me.”
hehehehe… I’ve thought the same thing. My *little* brother is about to graduate with his PhD in Physics, and it’s blowing my mind. I keep thinking, “But hey, he’s still my obnoxious, naive in so many ways, little brother!” LOL
How ’bout if I just call ya Dr.Dana? Then you can go around saying whatever you please and will at least be validated enough from hearing my accolades every now and then that you shan’t have any room for doubting the legitimacy of your own words. I’ll even quote you in my publishings from time to time. How’s that?!
Hey, I think we should just like publish a whole book (collaberations of meaningful and important blogs by the prestigious and very wise - and principled - Dr. Dana) by you for that matter (you know, having our own publishing co. and all), and then, as I’m sure you know, having a book published and all, would make you an instant AUTHORITY!…by golly, that’s much easier than getting a Ph.D., right?
I have a PhD in molecular biology.
Does that make you listen to me a bit more?
I’m smiling - I do understand your precarious position between your thoughts, and your need not to “break brotherhood” with your fellow Christians at HSB.
Peace,
Doc
At least you have a good sense of humor, Doc. And whether or not your PhD would cause me personally to listen more? It kinda depends on whether we are talking about molecular biology or something else…On certain points, I’m sure I could find some who believed more with my worldview, and I suspect I would tend to believe their argumentation over yours…no offense
: )
You have an interesting blog. I teach high school math and our assistant Superintendant told me during a summer school session that there is no such thing as intrinsic motivation. Those students all failed because we, as educators, failed to extrinsically motivate them.
When I think back to my years in high school, I got straight A’s because of my desire to succeed. My parents did not pay me for A’s like some did for their children.
I think there is value in both types of motivation but extrinsic motivation will only go so far if there is an absence of intrinsic motivation driving our students.
Thank you, Welcome!
I find it interesting for all the emphasis we place on extrinsic motivation, many studies have found it actually to be de-motivating in the long run. Even rats, when they are satiated, stop working for the reward.
We all want to be heard and having a PhD gives some credibility to what we said. It also stops from averyone to express their oppinion as the ultimate statement.
There are people like you that may have a good insight about something and they may have a better sense that many PhDs. If that is the case persuing higher education will allow you to discover other aspects you may not see now. Do you have enough intrinsic motivation? May be economic, or other limitations.
As in any group you may have natural born talented individuals with the righ enviromental conditions, those will succeed no matter what. Education is not a one big magic method, up to some point if majority of children do not have a nurturing enviroment, the options for failure increase.