Incentives: why or why not?
summary
Starts with Pavlov and Harlow evidence that rewards often backfire: extrinsic carrots vs sticks evoke behaviorism while puzzles and Lego studies show enjoyment drops when work is rewarded or publicly destroyed (Ariely’s groups average 10.6 robots; visible dismantling cuts output). Large bonuses sometimes worsen creative performance; giving a bonus up front then taking it away exploits loss aversion and raises effort (exercise study ~+50%). Research from Teresa Amabile and Menlo Innovations links sustained productivity to intrinsic motivation and small visible progress, not bigger payouts.
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chapters (23)
- 0:00Introduction
- 0:25Welcome
- 1:15Behaviorism
- 3:00Frederick Wiseman Taylor
- 3:44The Industrial Age
- 5:03We need a different approach
- 9:37Pizza Hut
- 12:27Incentives Motivate
- 13:02Two Kinds of Incentives
- 13:52The Power of Incentives
- 14:51Bonuses
- 17:59Is there any correlation
- 18:40We dont like to lose
- 21:07Experiment
- 22:46The Art of
- 23:44Two motivating factors
- 25:20Rescue dogs
- 28:23Lego robots
- 31:34People who enjoy something
- 31:57Progress Principle
- 33:03We Care
- 34:03Joy
- 36:41Comments
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