THE DIFFERENTIAL-EFFECTS OF TANGIBLE REWARDS AND PRAISE ON INTRINSIC MOTIVATION - A COMPARISON OF COGNITIVE EVALUATION THEORY AND OPERANT THEORY

Substantial research indicates that tangible rewards, such as money, p rizes, and tokens, decrease response rates by undermining intrinsic mo tivation. In contrast, praise appears to increase response rates by en hancing intrinsic motivation. Based on their interpretation of availab le evidence, many social-cognitive researchers warn not to use tangibl e rewards in applied settings and to use praise instead. Furthermore, they suggest that the differential effects of the two types of rewards on intrinsic motivation cannot be explained using principles of opera nt psychology. Cognitive evaluation theory provides one of the most re cent and widely cited social-cognitive explanations for the different effects of the two types of rewards on intrinsic motivation (Deci & Ry an, 1985). However, a review of existing research found little support for the explanations based on this theory and revealed three potentia l confounding effects: (a) temporal contiguity, (b) the number of rewa rd administrations, and (c) discriminative stimuli associated with rew ard availability. These three confounding factors provide explanations for the effects of tangible rewards and praise on intrinsic motivatio n that are consistent with principles of operant psychology.