Free Inquiry Project – Cultivating Intrinsic Motivation

Focussing on how teachers/learners can cultivate intrinsic motivation:

One of the most important aspects of cultivating intrinsic motivation is understanding the WHY behind it. The self-determination theory (SDT) is linked to this, as it helps us ask deeper questions beyond how to motivate others and makes us consider what conditions allow people to motivate themselves. SDT suggests that the drive to engage in an activity for oneself is increased when three core principles are met. These three principles are autonomy, competence, and relatedness, and when these principles are supported, it makes the learner have a deeper desire to learn more. Autonomy is about feeling as though we have a choice. It does not mean that we can do whatever we want, but it is about feeling like our opinion matters. Have you ever been in a situation where you feel as though your voice did not matter? I guarantee you did not feel inclined to continue contributing your perspective. In classroom environments, autonomy can be increased by encouraging goal setting in one’s personal life so that they feel as though the work they are doing is meaningful to their life specifically. In addition, competence is the feeling of being capable at something. This is important as feeling like you can grow in a task helps lead to more motivation. If you feel like you cannot do something, you feel discouraged, and if you feel like you have already mastered a task, you will not have greater motivation to continue working on something. Competence can be fostered by setting medium-challenging tasks, and then working up from there. The third principle is relatedness, and this is the feeling of being connected with others around you. This fulfills our need to belong, and without this, it makes one feel not interested in the task at hand. We can help foster this by encouraging collaboration in learning environments.

Reference

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2020). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory perspective: Definitions, theory, practices, and future directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 61, 101860. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2020.101860