Jennifer Henderlong Corpus

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivational Orientations in the Classroom: Age Differences and Academic Correlates

Age differences in intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and the relationships of each to academic outcomes were examined in an ethnically diverse sample of 797 3rd-grade through 8th-grade children. Using independent measures, the authors found intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to be only moderately correlated, suggesting that they may be largely orthogonal dimensions of motivation in school. Consistent with previous research, intrinsic motivation showed a significant linear decrease from 3rd grade through 8th grade and proved positively correlated with children’s grades and standardized test scores at all grade levels. Extrinsic motivation showed few differences across grade levels and proved negatively correlated with academic outcomes. Surprisingly few differences based on children’s sex or ethnicity were found. Causes and consequences of the disturbingly low levels of motivation for older, relative to younger, children are discussed.

The Effects of Person Versus Performance Praise on Children’s Motivation: Gender and age as moderating factors

Two studies were conducted to determine how gender and age moderate the long‐term and post‐failure motivational consequences of person versus performance praise. In Study 1, fourth‐ and fifth‐grade students (n = 93) engaged in a puzzle task while receiving either no praise, person praise, product praise, or process praise. Following a subsequent failure experience, behavioural measures indicated that product and process praise enhanced motivation and person praise dampened motivation for girls, but that there were few effects of praise on subsequent motivation for boys. In Study 2, a parallel procedure with preschool children (n = 76) showed that person, product, and process praise all enhanced motivation, relative to neutral feedback, for both girls and boys.

Profiles of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations in Elementary School: A Longitudinal Analysis

The authors used a person-centered, longitudinal approach to identify and evaluate naturally occurring combinations of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations among 490 third- through fifth-grade students. Cluster analysis revealed 3 groups, characterized by high levels of both motivations (high quantity): high intrinsic motivation but low extrinsic motivation (primarily intrinsic) and low intrinsic motivation but high extrinsic motivation (primarily extrinsic). Analyses of stability and change in cluster membership indicated that the primarily intrinsic cluster was most stable (76% stability) and the high-quantity cluster most precarious (45% stability) over the course of an academic year. Students in the primarily intrinsic cluster outperformed their peers in the other 2 clusters and showed the greatest increase in achievement over time.

Effects of person versus process praise on student motivation: stability and change in emerging adulthood

This study examined the effects of person praise and process praise on college students’ motivation and how these effects change as students progress through their undergraduate years. Hundred and eleven college students worked on three puzzle tasks and received either person praise, process praise, or no praise. Following subsequent failure, students reported on their intrinsic motivation, perceived competence, performance attributions and contingent self-worth. Results indicated that process praise enhances intrinsic motivation and perceived competence more than person praise, and that these effects vary as students advance toward their degree. While person praise decreased motivation for sophomores and juniors, process praise increased motivation for seniors; freshmen reported no significant differences in their motivation. Implications for classroom practice and the need for research that considers developmental differences within college samples are discussed.

Creating Rich Portraits: A Mixed-Methods Approach to Understanding Profiles of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations

A person-centered, mixed-methods approach (self-report surveys, semistructured interviews, school records) was used to characterize and evaluate profiles of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations among 243 third- through eighth-grade students. Cluster analysis suggested four distinct profiles: high quantity (high intrinsic, high extrinsic), primarily intrinsic (high intrinsic, low extrinsic), primarily extrinsic (low intrinsic, high extrinsic), and low quantity (low intrinsic, low extrinsic) motivation. The primarily intrinsic profile showed the most adaptive pattern of responses; the primarily extrinsic and low quantity profiles, conversely, displayed similarly maladaptive patterns. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses suggested that particular combinations of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations may explain students’ academic and emotional functioning in school better than levels of each variable in isolation.