Acquiring competence from both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards

Abstract

Background

The distinction between extrinsic and intrinsic rewards and their related motivations has been a major concern in educational psychology for decades. Although both types of rewards are related to the dopamine-fueled activation of the reward circuitry, neuroscientific studies now support the view that their processing also involves independent brain mechanisms.

Aims

We show that these mechanisms also are already present in birds and nonhuman mammals, as they track cues and extrinsic rewards in their environment (such as food and shelter), and we discuss a number of intrinsically rewarded activities (such as information seeking and play). The two categories of motivated behaviors evolved to perform distinct functions and are both crucial for the species survival.

Conclusion

We assume that a human-animal comparison is appropriate, and suggest that both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards in humans are necessary to acquire competence, and optimally manage real-life settings, including school environments. More specifically, we argue that intrinsic and extrinsic motivations are additive rather than conflicting processes, and that intrinsic motivation is characterized by exploratory behavior and is associated with benefits for an individual; it is a step to apprehend and exploit the knowledge acquired by means of extrinsic sources of reward.