Extrinsic motivation is reward-driven behavior. It is a type of operant conditioning, a method of changing behavior by using rewards or punishments to increase or decrease the likelihood of certain actions being repeated. Extrinsic motivation uses rewards (e.g., money, gifts, or special favors) to motivate others for doing or performing the desired action. Although extrinsic motivation often involves tangible rewards, it also occurs through abstract rewards, like praise, promotion, or fame (Meadows-Fernandez, 2018; What are Extrinsic Motivators?, n.d.).

In the context of businesses, extrinsic rewards refer to rewards given to employees that are typically monetary or concrete, like salary increases, bonuses, and perks. These rewards are extrinsic because they are not inherent to the work and are determined by someone other than the employee. There are four categories of extrinsic motivation: external, introjection, regulation through identification, and integrated regulation (Bravo Wellness, 2019; Vallerand, 1997):

i.    External regulation means you do something to satisfy an external demand or receive external incentives. An example would be a student who studies hard to get good grades to receive material rewards from their parents. Although the behavior is intentional, it is controlled by an external source and therefore, this action is externally regulated.

ii.  Introjection regulation involves accepting the cause of doing something. An example would be a student who spends lots of time practicing piano for a recital to avoid embarrassing themselves in front of others. This type of regulation is performed due to internal pressure to reduce guilt or anxiety, enhance ego or pride, or maintain self-esteem or feeling of self-worth.

iii. Regulation through identification is a less controlling form of extrinsic motivation. Identification means the person consciously values a goal and believes the activity is personally important.

iv. Integrated regulation occurs when one has fully accepted the reason for an action, i.e., a person has examined the cause and found it compatible with their own values and needs. Then the action becomes self-initiated and is autonomous and not controlled by external motivators (Ryan R & Deci, 2000). Despite being extrinsic, integrated motivation shares many similar qualities as intrinsic motivation. Some researchers even refer to integrated regulation as intrinsic because the person has completely internalized the extrinsic cause into their values.