Reinforcers and Punishers versus Incentives Reinforcers and punishers refer to good and bad behavior consequences.

Reinforcers and Punishers versus Incentives• Reinforcers and punishers refer to good and bad

behavior consequences

Selecting versus Motivating Behavior• Reinforcers: behavioral consequences that select

behavior, i.e., increase the frequency of behavior• Punishers: behavioral consequences that deselect

behavior, i.e., decrease the frequency of behavior

Selecting versus Motivating Behavior, continued• Incentives: Anticipated external stimuli that

motivate behavior to occur • Positive incentives motivate approach behavior, i.e.,

behavior to attain the incentive • Negative incentives motivate avoidance behavior,

i.e., behavior to prevent the incentive from occurring

Past versus Future• Reinforcers and punishers are actual consequences

of behavior • Positive and negative incentives are anticipated

consequences

Objective and Subjective Incentive Value• Incentive value: attractiveness of an incentive based

on objective properties, e.g., number or amount• Utility: subjective value of an incentive, based on it

providing satisfaction, pleasure, and usefulness

Relationship between Objective and Subjective Value

• Fechner’s Law: relationship between objective and subjective incentive value (utility) such that equal increases in objective value, produce smaller and smaller increases in subjective value (utility)

Figure 10.1. Dollars and Utility.The relationship between the number of dollars and their utility is such that as the dollar amount increases, utility increases, but in smaller and smaller amounts. The graph is only an approximation of the true dollar-utility relationship.

Incentives as Losses and Gains

• Anticipated gains equal positive incentives• Anticipated losses equal negative incentives

Losses Loom Larger Than Gains

• Losses loom larger than gains: the loss of something is more dissatisfying than the gain of it

• Losing $10 is more dissatisfying than gaining $10 is satisfying

Figure 10.3. Loss/Gain and Seller/Buyer Behavior.

Typical median willingness-to-accept (sell) prices were greater than median willingness-to-pay (buy) prices for mugs, pens, and binoculars. When seller and buyer agreed on a price, money and goods exchanged hands. Source: “Experimental Tests of the Endowment Effect and the Coase Theorem” by D. Kahneman et al., 1990, Journal of Political Economy, 98, table 2, p. 1332, and table 3, p. 1334.

Factors that Affect Incentive Value• There are a number of variables that affect the

subjective value or utility of an incentive• More valuable incentives are described by more,

bigger, and better and less valuable incentives by less, smaller, and worse

Amount• Incentive amount: quantity or number of incentives

increases their value• A grade of A is valued more than a grade of B• $20 is more valued than $10• As incentive value increases, motivation increases

Rate of Reinforcement• As the rate of reinforcement increases, rate of

responding increases• Given a choice, an animal or person selects the

activity that produces a higher rate of reinforcement

Rate of Reinforcement, continued

• Melioration: the shift toward an activity that is more lucrative or provides a greater rate of reinforcement

Contrast of Incentive Amount• Contrast effect: change in motivation that depends on

how the current incentive differs from prior incentives• Positive incentive contrast: an upward shift in

incentive value, motivated behavior increases• Negative contrast: a downward shift in incentive value,

motivated behavior decreases

Temporal Motivation Theory• How far an incentive is situated in the future

determines the value or utility of that incentive

Incentive Utility from Amount and Delay, continued

• (Expected incentive value) (1 + Delay Interval)

• Incentive-delay interval is time when the incentive becomes available

Utility =

Delay Discounting• Delay discounting: process by which a future

incentive is represented in the present at a marked down value, e.g., $10 delayed by one month is discounted to be worth $1 right now

• Person decides between incentives based on their discounted values

Preference Reversal• Preference reversal: a change in preference from

one incentive to another as a result of a change in their discounted values based on changes in the incentive-delay intervals

Preference Reversal, continued• Decide between each of the eight choices1. $25 now versus $50 now2. $25 now versus $50 in 2 weeks3. $25 now versus $50 in 4 weeks4. $25 now versus $50 in 6 weeks5. $25 now versus $50 in 8 weeks6. $25 now versus $50 in 12 weeks7. $25 now versus $50 in 20 weeks8. $25 now versus $50 in 52 weeks (one year)

Figure 10.5. Changes in Incentive Value or Utility over Time.During time x, the larger incentive has greater utility than the smaller incentive. As the delay interval decreases, the smaller incentive attains a higher utility during time y. Preference reversal occurs at the division of time x and time y.

Procrastination

• Procrastination refers to delay in goal-directed behavior despite knowing that one will be worse off as a result

• For example, delay work on a paper knowing that a lower grade will be the result

Figure 10.7. Changes in Utility of Socializing versus Essay Writing.A student’s utility estimation of socializing versus writing an essay changes over the semester. The utility of socializing remains constant, since that is always available. The utility of writing an essay increases as its due date approaches (delay interval decreases). Source: “The Nature of Procrastination: A Meta-Analytic and Theoretical Review of Quintessential Self-Regulatory Failure” by P. Steel, 2007, Psychological Bulleting, 133, figure 2, p. 72. Copyright 2007 by APA. Reprinted by permission.

Intrinsic Motivation

• Motivated behavior that occurs when there is no obvious external consequence as a result of the behavior

Differences Between Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation

• Extrinsic motivation: behavior is coerced by external sources, e.g., grades, money, or approval of others

• Intrinsic motivation: behavior is not coerced by external sources, motivation is inherent in the activity

Differences Between Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation, continued

• Functional autonomy: outcome of a process that involved the transition from extrinsically motivated behavior to intrinsically motivated behavior

• For example, you started running for exercise but now run for the pleasure of it

Purpose of Intrinsically Motivated Behavior• Intrinsically motivated behavior may occur for

several reasons or be based on different sources: curiosity, effectance, and flow

Extrinsic Reward and Intrinsic Motivation• An extrinsic incentive can decrease the intrinsic value

or interest in an activity• Cognitive evaluation theory: person evaluates

reason for his/her behavior• If behavior is attributed to external incentive, then

when incentive is removed, intrinsic interest declines

Extrinsic Reward, Intrinsic Motivation, and Performance

• Although extrinsic incentives can decrease intrinsic interests, incentives can also increase performance

• Professional athletes play games because they enjoy doing so but also because they are paid well

• Students attend class because they enjoy the course and because of expecting a good grade

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivational Orientations• Motivational orientation: when a person is

consistently directed toward an extrinsic or intrinsic source of motivation

• A person can be motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic sources of motivation