Motivation is the force that moves us; invites us to explore, to act and to discover. In children, motivation is especially important, because they are in their early stages of learning.
But, what types of motivation exist and how to develop them in the little ones? We talk about it and offer some guidelines to enhance the two great types of motivation in children.
What is motivation and what is it for?
We all need motivation to do things , both children and adults. This is defined as the set of forces that initiate and direct human behavior; They are our passions, what moves us, our internal motor, and, ultimately, what leads us to act.
The objective of motivation is to define what motives people have when we carry out certain behaviors, and why we do them in certain situations and not in others.
In the youngest, motivation is especially important, because it encourages them to learn, to discover, to explore … That is why it is so important to accompany them in this process of discovery and enhancement of their motivation.
The two great types of motivation
We find different types of motivation, although broadly speaking, we can speak of two main types of motivation that lead us to act : intrinsic and extrinsic.
Intrinsic motivation
Intrinsic motivation is characterized by the fact that the person performs the task or activity in question for the simple pleasure of performing it. Thus, the activity is an end in itself, and its performance allows the person to feel autonomous and competent.
An example of intrinsic motivation in children would be the act of drawing for the mere pleasure of doing so; what brings pleasure or enjoyment here is the action of drawing. You don’t draw to get something, for example a prize, but because you enjoy doing it . Another example: playing for the mere pleasure of playing.
Extrinsic motivation
Extrinsic motivation, or motivation by incentives, on the other hand, is characterized by the fact that the person performs an activity in question to obtain consequences derived from its performance .
In this way, homework is a means to an end. For example, doing homework because it is known that afterwards there is a game time, or studying to get good grades.
How to stimulate these motivations in the little ones
How to stimulate intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in children? There are different ways to enhance the different types of motivation in children.
Both that motivation that makes children, and also adults, do things for the mere pleasure of doing them , as well as the motivation that arises from the search to achieve something (which in turn allows us to work perseverance and effort in More smalls).
We leave you six key ideas that can help you promote these motivations:
1) Stimulates your self-knowledge
We are talking about helping our son get to know himself better. How can we do it? Encouraging and accompanying you in the process of knowing your own tastes , preferences, hobbies …
Stimulating your self-knowledge will open your range of possibilities when choosing the activities you like. If you can identify which activities you like and which you don’t, you will be a little closer to stimulating your own (especially intrinsic) motivation.
Why? Because you will find things you enjoy just for the sake of doing them. In addition, you can also begin to learn what things you are good at and why it is important to strive to get what you want.
2) Animal to be explored
In line with the previous point, we know that exploration allows children to know themselves better and, above all, to know what they like and what they don’t. Therefore, accompany him to explore, do not limit him.
Encourage him to try new things, be it activities, different types of music, new foods … All this will promote his self-knowledge and also his ability to be enthusiastic about himself.
3) If they enjoy something, don’t offer them an outside incentive
This key idea helps us to stimulate intrinsic motivation . There is a theory in psychology, proven through research, that says that our intrinsic motivation decreases when, doing something we like, we are rewarded for it.
For example (and this was demonstrated in a study), if a child loves to draw, and does it because he likes it, and suddenly we start to reward him (for example, with a gift) for doing it, his intrinsic motivation will decrease and increase. your extrinsic motivation.
That is, it will start to stop drawing if it does not have that external prize, because it is already waiting for it. Therefore, it is important that if we detect that our child enjoys doing something “just because” (for the mere enjoyment of the activity), we do not interfere with that motivation, rewarding him “from the outside” , although we can encourage him to continue with his hobby .
4) Promote their fun
Promoting fun in children, whether reading, playing, learning … will help us to increase their motivation, doing the task in question. And it is that, the fact of connecting with some activity through laughter and fun , makes the interest in said activity also increase.
Therefore, try that the activities in which your child shows interest, are fun for him and give him that dose of joy that will also improve his motivation.
5) Capture their interest through curiosity
Curiosity encompasses those instinctive behaviors that encourage us to explore, to investigate, to know more and of course, to learn.
In children, promoting their curiosity, awakening their interest in things , helps us to encourage their motivation, since in this way they will be more willing to do or discover those things that catch their attention.
“The whole art of teaching is the only art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds in order to satisfy it later.”
-Anatole France-
6) Encourage him to find his own motivation
There is nothing that motivates us more than the fact of finding, for ourselves, that source of motivation.
For this reason, it is important that you accompany your child, not only in discovering their interests and passions, but also in what lies behind all this: their most primary motivation, that motor that invites them to move , to seek, to know.
“Passion is the energy that mobilizes us to fulfill our mission and vision of life.”
-Antonio Páez Pinzón-
You can talk directly to him, asking him what makes him feel reading, drawing, playing, doing homework … Do you enjoy learning? Are you doing it because you feel good about yourself? Or is it because there is a source of extrinsic motivation, an incentive?
Photos | Cover (pexels), Image 1 (pexels), Image 2 (pexels), Image 3 (pexels)
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