{"id":{"repo_id":"alabama","oai_identifier":"oai:ir.ua.edu:123456789/18002"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/alabama/oai:ir.ua.edu:123456789/18002","repository":{"repo_id":"alabama","name":"University of Alabama","base_url":"https://ir-api.ua.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Intrinsic Motivation Under Repeated and Non- Repeated Rewards During a Reading Task","abstract":"For several decades, theorists have debated about the underlying causes of intrinsic motivation (i.e., the subjective experience of pursuing an activity for its own sake), disagreeing about whether performance-contingent rewards increase or decrease intrinsic motivation. On one hand, the content-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that obvious, expected, and salient rewards may reduce intrinsic motivation. On the other hand, the structural-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that if a specific goal (e.g., receiving a reward) is repeatedly paired with an activity (e.g., reading), intrinsic motivation may increase. To test these two views, the current study (N = 330) manipulated reward (repeated reward, non-repeated reward, baseline) on a reading task, measured content- and structural-based mechanisms, and assessed intrinsic motivation. According to the content-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should decrease intrinsic motivation by undermining perceived internal locus of causality and autonomy. According to the structural-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should increase intrinsic motivation by enhancing perceived instrumentality and activity-goal association. Partially supporting each view, findings indicated that while reward (vs. baseline) and most content- and structural-based mechanisms increased intrinsic motivation, neither reward (vs. baseline) nor repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward predicted any of the content- or structural-based mechanisms. Overall, these data call for alternative explanations on how performance-contingent rewards relate to intrinsic motivation.","abstract_html":"For several decades, theorists have debated about the underlying causes of intrinsic motivation (i.e., the subjective experience of pursuing an activity for its own sake), disagreeing about whether performance-contingent rewards increase or decrease intrinsic motivation. On one hand, the content-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that obvious, expected, and salient rewards may reduce intrinsic motivation. On the other hand, the structural-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that if a specific goal (e.g., receiving a reward) is repeatedly paired with an activity (e.g., reading), intrinsic motivation may increase. To test these two views, the current study (N = 330) manipulated reward (repeated reward, non-repeated reward, baseline) on a reading task, measured content- and structural-based mechanisms, and assessed intrinsic motivation. According to the content-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should decrease intrinsic motivation by undermining perceived internal locus of causality and autonomy. According to the structural-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should increase intrinsic motivation by enhancing perceived instrumentality and activity-goal association. Partially supporting each view, findings indicated that while reward (vs. baseline) and most content- and structural-based mechanisms increased intrinsic motivation, neither reward (vs. baseline) nor repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward predicted any of the content- or structural-based mechanisms. Overall, these data call for alternative explanations on how performance-contingent rewards relate to intrinsic motivation.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Wahlers, Justin Nicholas"],"institution":"University of Alabama Libraries","degree_name":null,"degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Hart, William","Barth, Joan","Castagna, Peter","Salekin, Randy"],"advisors":["Garrison, Katie E."],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026","date_published":"2026","updated_at":"2026-07-27T18:44:25Z","subjects":["autonomy","effort","goals","interest","intrinsic motivation","reward"],"languages":["en_US","English"],"rights":["All rights reserved by the author unless otherwise indicated."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["1229492"],"render_values":[{"text":"1229492","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://ir.ua.edu/handle/123456789/18002","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Hart, William","Barth, Joan","Castagna, Peter","Salekin, Randy"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Garrison, Katie E."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Wahlers, Justin Nicholas"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2026-07-09T13:30:49Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2026-07-09T13:30:49Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2026"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["University of Alabama Libraries"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["thesis","text"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["autonomy","effort","goals","interest","intrinsic motivation","reward"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]},{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en_US"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["All rights reserved by the author unless otherwise indicated."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.other","label":"Dc Identifier Other","values":["1229492"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://ir.ua.edu/handle/123456789/18002"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Electronic Thesis or Dissertation"]},{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["For several decades, theorists have debated about the underlying causes of intrinsic motivation (i.e., the subjective experience of pursuing an activity for its own sake), disagreeing about whether performance-contingent rewards increase or decrease intrinsic motivation. On one hand, the content-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that obvious, expected, and salient rewards may reduce intrinsic motivation. On the other hand, the structural-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that if a specific goal (e.g., receiving a reward) is repeatedly paired with an activity (e.g., reading), intrinsic motivation may increase. To test these two views, the current study (N = 330) manipulated reward (repeated reward, non-repeated reward, baseline) on a reading task, measured content- and structural-based mechanisms, and assessed intrinsic motivation. According to the content-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should decrease intrinsic motivation by undermining perceived internal locus of causality and autonomy. According to the structural-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should increase intrinsic motivation by enhancing perceived instrumentality and activity-goal association. Partially supporting each view, findings indicated that while reward (vs. baseline) and most content- and structural-based mechanisms increased intrinsic motivation, neither reward (vs. baseline) nor repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward predicted any of the content- or structural-based mechanisms. Overall, these data call for alternative explanations on how performance-contingent rewards relate to intrinsic motivation."]},{"key":"dc:format.medium","label":"Dc Format Medium","values":["electronic"]},{"key":"dc:format.mimetype","label":"Dc Format Mimetype","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Intrinsic Motivation Under Repeated and Non- Repeated Rewards During a Reading Task"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Hart, William","Barth, Joan","Castagna, Peter","Salekin, Randy"],"dc:contributor.advisor":["Garrison, Katie E."],"dc:creator":["Wahlers, Justin Nicholas"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2026-07-09T13:30:49Z"],"dc:date.available":["2026-07-09T13:30:49Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2026"],"dc:description":["Electronic Thesis or Dissertation"],"dc:description.abstract":["For several decades, theorists have debated about the underlying causes of intrinsic motivation (i.e., the subjective experience of pursuing an activity for its own sake), disagreeing about whether performance-contingent rewards increase or decrease intrinsic motivation. On one hand, the content-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that obvious, expected, and salient rewards may reduce intrinsic motivation. On the other hand, the structural-based view of intrinsic motivation posits that if a specific goal (e.g., receiving a reward) is repeatedly paired with an activity (e.g., reading), intrinsic motivation may increase. To test these two views, the current study (N = 330) manipulated reward (repeated reward, non-repeated reward, baseline) on a reading task, measured content- and structural-based mechanisms, and assessed intrinsic motivation. According to the content-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should decrease intrinsic motivation by undermining perceived internal locus of causality and autonomy. According to the structural-based view, reward (vs. baseline) and repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward should increase intrinsic motivation by enhancing perceived instrumentality and activity-goal association. Partially supporting each view, findings indicated that while reward (vs. baseline) and most content- and structural-based mechanisms increased intrinsic motivation, neither reward (vs. baseline) nor repeated (vs. non-repeated) reward predicted any of the content- or structural-based mechanisms. Overall, these data call for alternative explanations on how performance-contingent rewards relate to intrinsic motivation."],"dc:format.medium":["electronic"],"dc:format.mimetype":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier.other":["1229492"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://ir.ua.edu/handle/123456789/18002"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:language.iso":["en_US"],"dc:publisher":["University of Alabama Libraries"],"dc:rights":["All rights reserved by the author unless otherwise indicated."],"dc:subject":["autonomy","effort","goals","interest","intrinsic motivation","reward"],"dc:title":["Intrinsic Motivation Under Repeated and Non- Repeated Rewards During a Reading Task"],"dc:type":["thesis","text"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T18:44:25Z"}