Achievement-Based Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation: A Test of Cognitive Mediators.

TLDR

The study examined how achievement‑based rewards during learning and testing affect students’ intrinsic motivation. Undergraduate students completed a problem‑solving activity in a 2×2 factorial design manipulating achievement‑based rewards during learning and testing, with intrinsic motivation assessed by task duration and interest ratings during a free‑choice period. Achievement‑based rewards during learning or testing increased intrinsic motivation, mediated by perceived competence and interest–internal attribution, supporting cognitive evaluation, attribution, and social‑cognitive theories.

Abstract

This study assessed how rewards impacted intrinsic motivation when students were rewarded for achievement while learning an activity, for performing at a specific level on a test, or for both. Undergraduate university students engaged in a problem-solving activity. The design was a 2 2 factorial with 2 levels of reward in a learning phase (reward for achievement, no reward) and 2 levels of reward in a test phase (reward for achievement, no reward). Intrinsic motivation was measured as time spent on the experimental task and ratings of task interest during a free-choice period. A major finding was that achievement-based rewards during learning or testing increased participants’ intrinsic motivation. A path analysis indicated that 2 processes (perceived competence and interest–internal attribution) mediated the positive effects of achievement-based rewards in learning and testing on intrinsic motivation. Findings are discussed in terms of the cognitive evaluation, attribution, and social–cognitive theories.