Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

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When a person plans or wants to do something, he or she has a motivation for that specific thing. In other words, when a person does something, that person has a reason why he or she should do that thing. Not always there is a reason to do something, but sometimes may be many reasons that are backing a person to take those actions to do it. This happens not only to humans, or living organisms, but also in nonliving organisms. An example is when a rock which had bounced after it hit the floor while falling down. Scientists may tell some of the reasons why the rock does that kind of action, but they cannot tell all of the reasons that back the rock’s actions. A similar thing, as the scientists, was Alfie Kohn trying to do in his essay, “Why Self-Discipline is Overrated”. He was telling some of the motivation that people have that back part of their actions. Two of those motivations which Kohn talks about are intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and how they are sometimes combined together.

Beginning with first motivation, which Kohn talked about, that is intrinsic motivation. This t...

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