- Autonomy and meaningful goals - We are at our best when we choose to work towards meaningful goals.
- Rewards are often given for outcomes rather than valued behaviour. Rewarding individuals does work but what we have to be careful is that individuals can often look towards the final outcome and may undertake unethical approaches to achieve the desired outcome. It's better to reward for efforts than the outcomes of efforts.
- Encouraging a child to do his or her best is enough - As this is not only supportive but may also help reduce anxiety which often can compromise performance.
- Self-determination theory - These points are based on what makes people happy, and what makes people happy according to the self-determination theory, is that all humans have three basic psychological needs and these are:
- The need to belong or feel connected
- The need to feel competent, and
- The need for autonomy or self-determination.
"Human beings have an innate drive to be autonomous, self-determined, and connected to one another. When these needs are met, the actions of people - be they students or employees - will be rooted not by short-term and inconsistent extrinsic motivation, but by sustaining, ingrained and habitual intrinsic motivation."
The article I read was titled, "Should you reward your child for A grades?" and is written by Sandra Davie on the 1st April 2012. It featured Profession Richard Ryan a clinical psychologist and professor of Psychology, Psychiatry and Education at the University of Rochester, New York, US.
You'll find the article here if you're interested in reading it, I'd say it's worth a read. Enjoy! www.nie.edu.sg/newsroom/media-coverage/2012/should-you-reward-your-child-a-grades
