In an experiment conducted in the 1970s, university students were divided into two groups and both groups were given Legos. While the first group is given money as a reward for each meaningful shape they create with Legos, the second group is given nothing. While students are working with Legos, time is kept. As expected, it was determined that the group that received the reward spent more time.
In the second part of the experiment, the students are taken to another room and given Legos again. Unlike the first part, different objects and magazines are also placed in the room. It is said that they can play with Legos if they want, or read magazines if they get bored. However, this time there is no promise of reward for either group. This time, the results are the opposite of what was expected: while the group that received a reward in the first part played less with Legos, the group that did not receive any reward played much longer.
Another experiment is conducted with children. Kindergarten children are divided into three groups and they are given colored crayons and asked to draw a picture. It is said that the first group will be given a reward when they paint. The second group is not told anything, but is given a reward as a surprise when the painting is finished. The third group is given nothing. As expected, the children who received the reward are more engaged in painting.
Two weeks later, these children are given free time and crayons and different toys are placed in front of them. However, this time there is no reward for any group. As a result, while both groups that received awards in the first part did not show much interest in painting, the third group that did not receive an award painted with the same excitement.
Then these studies that shook the world of science show that when the child receives an award, he shows more interest in that work and spends more time. Moreover, receiving a reward increases the child's motivation and excitement to the highest level. However, when the reward disappears, the child loses interest and quits the task. Because the internal motivation to engage in work is replaced by an external motivation (reward). For this reason, his internal motivation almost disappears. When the reward disappears, the child has no motivation to do that task, as there will be no external motivation. The interesting thing is that the result does not change whether the reward is promised before the behavior or given as a surprise after the behavior.
Well, this is clear. How can we use it in our lives? When a mother comes home from work, she is disturbed by her child running around the house, moving and folding the carpets. However, she does not want to get angry or punish her child. That's why she makes an offer: she says that she appreciates her child moving and folding the carpets while playing in the evenings, so she will give him 1 lira. While the child already enjoys playing and dealing, the fact that he will also receive money motivates him. The child continues to play for a few days and receive money. Then the mother says that she can now give 50 kuruş to her child. The child accepts this even though he doesn't want to. After a few more days, the mother says she can't give money anymore and the child stops running around and moving the carpets.
Finally, sometimes parents promise their children that they will get a phone if they pass the class. However, here too, the intrinsic motivation to study is destroyed and replaced with a phone. In this case, the child expects a constant reward for passing the grade in the following years. If you get a phone regardless of passing the class, it will be a gift. However, the best thing to do here is for the child to save his own pocket money and buy his phone. When your child's pocket money does not allow for this, you can add the budget you will allocate for the phone to your child's pocket money in small amounts. Thus, the child learns to labor.
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