The Hidden Cost Of Rewards

When you reward someone in a conscious way, you do it with the intention of reinforcing certain behaviors or attitudes. This is especially true in children. However, there is a hidden cost when we use rewards to influence behavior.

You then use motivation based on a reward. Over time, however, this undermines the intrinsic motivation a person possesses for the activity they are performing.

Intrinsic and extrinsic behavior

To explain the effect of the hidden cost of rewards, we need to understand the difference between the two forms of motivation. Behavior that is intrinsically motivated is the behavior that we engage in spontaneously for pleasure or out of personal interest.

We do these things without any reward, inducement, or outward control. As a result, these activities are not means to an end. They are worth it in their own right.

On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from incentives and consequences from the external environment. So it comes from a behavioral contract. This then says “do this” (the required behavior) and you will get “that” (the prize associated with it).

At first glance, behaviors may appear intrinsic or extrinsic. The fundamental difference between the two forms lies in the source that provides and directs the behavior.

Intrinsic motivation comes from the spontaneous fulfillment of the psychological need provided by the activity. In the case of extrinsic motivation, it comes from external incentives and consequences.

Interference in the learning process

People give rewards because they expect it to increase motivation and behavior. When you give a reward, this extrinsic price intervenes in the learning process. It also gets in the way of the way someone autonomously steers themselves. This is one of the hidden cost of rewards.

Imagine that parents would always reward their children with money if they have good school results. After this happens several times, the learner will just want to memorize information to succeed.

In other words, they will no longer feel intrinsically motivated to gain a conceptual understanding of the material. The only reason they will study is to get something in return.

To explain it in fundamental terms, we can say that forcing or exaggerating on someone causes a change in the weight of the reasons for doing the task.

This is true even when the reward is very attractive (such as money, for example). After all, the reasons change. They are no longer connected with autonomy but with the environment.

Expected and tangible rewards

Expected rewards undermine intrinsic motivation. However, unexpected rewards don’t. The hidden cost of rewards is more or less emphatically dependent on the nature of the reinforcement.

Tangible rewards exert some form of control over behavior. Examples are money, prizes and trophies. We often use them in different contexts (family, work, school) to encourage people to do things they would not otherwise do.

Numerous studies have shown that unexpected and unconditional tangible rewards do not negatively affect intrinsic motivation. They do not increase or decrease intrinsic motivation.

Remember that the latter are the rewards that a person gets regardless of his achievement. However, rewards that depend on participation, finishing and execution reduce intrinsic motivation.

When is external motivation positive?

Extrinsic motivation works well in certain situations. In those cases, there is no hidden cost. In other words, there are exceptions in which the incentives, consequences, and external rewards have a beneficial effect. We are talking here specifically about those activities that in themselves have a very low intrinsic motivation.

Examples of these types of activities are recycling, saving energy, following the traffic rules or encouraging older citizens to participate in a physical activity. In all these examples it works positively to reward good behavior. If we don’t reward this behavior, people won’t actively commit to doing it.

As you can see, there are always two ways to enjoy an activity. Suppose you play an instrument because you enjoy it. You spend time on it because you want to develop your skills. In that case, you do it because of your intrinsic motivation.

However, if you’re doing it because it provides an opportunity to earn money, prizes, and trophies, or to impress others, then there’s extrinsic motivation at play here. What motivation do you recognize in yourself? One, the other or both?