People have different motivations when it comes to acquiring new knowledge. Even students have a wide range of incentives for taking a certain program and working hard on their studies. Therefore, it is of major importance to analyze both intrinsic and extrinsic types of motivation to develop the best strategy for motivating psychology students. I strongly believe that intrinsic motivation plays a more significant role in the learning process.
Students’ behavior and attitude to studies can be shaped by various extrinsic factors, including praise and marks. Nevertheless, numerous experiments have already proven that both tangible and intangible rewards in many cases begin to undermine the original intrinsic motivation, which is a far more powerful and long-lasting type of motivation. Respect in the classroom and a sense of belonging can easily outperform good marks as the main factor behind each student’s everyday decision to attend a class and study hard.
One of the prominent examples includes a series of research conducted in the 20th century to find out whether a hobby can easily be transformed into a dream job. It turned out that once people get used to being paid for a small number of most valued actions, their original passion for their work fades away. Thus, extrinsic motivation can be more powerful, but it is likely to be more fruitful than intrinsic motivation in the long run, as the latter, by definition, encourages creative thinking.
Professors should realize that the only way to make a student perform great regularly is to find the inner strings that will encourage him/her to believe in future success. Developing a habit for a successful learning experience is one of the best techniques that can be utilized in college. Providing psychology students with a sense of control over the learning environment will undoubtedly encourage them to show initiative. Challenging students with complex tasks that imply flexibility and ingenuity is another way to boost their intrinsic motivation. Moreover, for psychology students, such experience will prove to be extremely beneficial, as they will be a part of an experiment that can be analyzed in detail in psychology classes.