Interpersonal
Motivation
In addition to individual factors in
motivation, there are other factors that arise from interactions with
other people.
- Competition is one of
these interpersonal factors. Competition motivates behavior
because people can enhance their own self-esteem when they are
able to make comparisons of their own performance to that of
others. While all learners appear to be motivated to some extent
by competition, the importance of competition is greater for some
learners than for others. These differences are often related to
the person's previous experience or to the importance that
cultures or subcultures place on competition versus cooperation. A
detailed discussion of the role of competition in education can be
found in Rich & DeVitis (1992). An argument against the use of
competition in schools can be found in Kohn (1986).
Examples of ways to use competition to stimulate intrinsic
motivation:
- "Yours was one of the best papers in
this class."
- A student graduates with a high
enough class rank to get into the college of his choice.
- A student wins the Jeopardy-style
game based on the information her class was required to
study.
Note: The competition doesn't have
to be a formal competition. All that is required is that
the person compare his/her performance to that of others.
Note: Not all competitions are examples
of intrinsic motivation. If students are required to compete over
things that they don't care about, this would be an example of a
very extrinsic form of motivation.
- A second interpersonal factor in
motivation is cooperation, in which learners derive
satisfaction from working toward group goals. As was the case with
competition, the motivating force of cooperation is stronger for
some persons than others, and these differences are often related
to the person's previous experience or to the importance that
cultures or subcultures place on cooperation. The motivating
effects of competition and cooperation are discussed in greater
detail in the Classroom Atmosphere section of this chapter.
Examples of ways to use cooperation to stimulate intrinsic
motivation:
- "Because each of us contributed, our
group project received a high grade."
- "If we all do our part, we'll make
lots of money."
- A team of student wins a
College-Bowl-style game. The teacher assigned all the members
of the class to groups of five students. In order for the team
to succeed, each individual had to do well. Therefore, all the
team members helped the others on the team. {This is an example
of a combination of competition and cooperation.
It may also involve a challenge.}
Note: The cooperation doesn't have
to be based on formal cooperative learning. All that is required
is that the person derive satisfaction from contributing to the
success of others.
- A third interpersonal factor in
motivation is recognition. Most people enjoy having
their efforts and accomplishments recognized and appreciated by
others. In order to obtain recognition, the activity of the
learner must be visible to others. There are three ways to achieve
visibility: (1) the process of performing an activity may be
visible, (2) the product of the activity may be visible, or (3)
some other result of the activity may be visible (for example, an
article may appear in the newspaper listing the names of people
who participated in a science fair).
Examples of ways to use recognition to stimulate intrinsic
motivation:
- "Son, that's a really good paper."
{The same comment could be directed to Mary, Bubba, or anyone
else.}
- "The following students did
outstanding work…."
- "Because of your contribution, our
group project received a high grade." {This is a combination of
recognition and cooperation.}
- "Here's an award for finishing first
in your class." {This is a combination of recognition
and competition.}
Note: The differences between recognition
and competition are that (1) recognition does not require a
comparison to someone else's performance and (2)
competition does not require the approval of an
outsider.
Review Quiz 6
Indicate whether each of the following
teachers is emphasizing competition, cooperation, or recognition as a
motivational strategy. (The answer could be one of these, a
combination of these, or none of these.) Also identify any of the
individual motivational factors that are present.
- Mr. Walters lets his students play
NUMBER MUNCHERS, an arcade-style game in which students
practice their math skills. When a student's game score is
among the ten best, that student's name goes into the Hall of
Fame, which other students can view when they play the
game.
- Miss Monroe gives her weekly
ten-minute quiz. Then she lets the students retake the test
together and study together for a half hour. They get points
toward their grade based on the performance of the group on the
retake. Then they take a different form of the test at the end
of the class. The higher of the two individual test scores
counts for each student.
- Coach Wilkes gives outstanding
performance rewards to all members of the track team who
improved their weight-lifting performance by at least
20%.
-
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Interpersonal Motivation
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Introduction
Motivation
Intrinsic
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Interpersonal
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Summary of Intrinsic
Motivation
Motivating Through Curriculum
Reinforcement and
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Affective Aspects of
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Physiological
Aspects of Motivation
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Needs and Motivation
Self-Efficacy
Attribution
Theory
Development and
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Motivation as a
Personality Characteristic
Teacher
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Social Aspects of
Motivation: Classroom Structure
What Teachers Can Do
About Motivation
What Parents Can Do
About Motivation
What Students Can Do
About Motivation
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