Article - Frey: motivation as a limit pricing

11 important questions on Article - Frey: motivation as a limit pricing

Motivation crowding effect:

pricing influences individuals’ incentives to perform a task for its own sake within a given sector.

Motivation spill-over effect:

intrinsic motivation is transferred from one sector to another. Intrinsic motivation is crowded out if the agents perceive the application of prices reduces the principal’s recognition for their performance.

Three types of cognitive conditions under which increased monetary rewards diminish agents’ intrinsic motivation to perform a task:

Recognition
fairness
self determination
  • Higher grades + faster learning
  • Never study anything twice
  • 100% sure, 100% understanding
Discover Study Smart

There are three kinds of crowding effects:

Crowding in
crowding neutral
crowding out

Describe crowding in effect

pricing improves intrinsic motivation. External rewards enhance and create intrinsic motivation.

Describe crowding out effect

pricing debases moral values such as ‘truth, trust, acceptance’ and thereby reduces the intrinsic motivation to perform according to the wishes of the principal. People reduce intrinsic motivation once they are extrinsically guided. “overjustification”: being motivated at the same time by two incentives (e.g. one external and one internal) for the same task.

Conditions favouring positive or negative influence of pricing on intrinsic motivation:

Framework in which monetary rewards/punishments are undertaken - The more personal the relationship between principal and agent,

Characteristics of external intervention

Desrribe Characteristics of external intervention

- Monetary rewards and punishments which distinguish between persons of high and low intrinsic motivation are considered as being “fair” and therefore tend to raise intrinsic motivation.

- The more a reward is contingent on task engagement and on the performance desired by the principal, the more strongly the locus of control is shifted from intrinsic to extrinsic preferences, and the stronger the crowding-out effect.

- The more strongly pricing implies an acknowledgement of the agent’s intrinsic motivation, the more strongly it fosters intrinsic motivation.

Describe Framework in which monetary rewards/punishments are undertaken

- The more personal the relationship between principal and agent, the more important intrinsic motivation. Monetary reward or punishment shifts the locus of control from intrinsic to extrinsic motivation and a crowding-out effect will occur.

- The more interesting a task for the agent, the higher his intrinsic motivation to perform well. Increased monetary rewards or punishments reduce self-determination and self-evaluation of one’s competence.

- The more extensive an agent’s participation possibilities, the higher his intrinsic motivation.

Motivation spillovers Two sectors:

(1) sector of economy in which pricing affects intrinsic motivation; (2) sector in which pricing cannot be applied because it is forbidden by law or because of too high transaction costs.

Read Frey’s “Motivation as a limit to pricing” and explain the title. How could (problems with) motivation limit the possibilities of pricing?

The answer to this is the summary of the entire article. Pricing (monetary incentives like flexible wage schemes) can lead to crowding out of intrinsic motivation. That may result in workers adjusting their level of effort downwards (crowding out of intrinsic motivation) if they feel that their efforts are not recognized by the employer or if they feel that the monetary incentives are unfair or if they feel that the control that they have over their own work is taken away from them

The question on the page originate from the summary of the following study material:

  • A unique study and practice tool
  • Never study anything twice again
  • Get the grades you hope for
  • 100% sure, 100% understanding
Remember faster, study better. Scientifically proven.
Trustpilot Logo