From 2001
I wrote:
On 8 Aug 01, at 16:56, Julian wrote:
>
> Hello
>
> Is anyone familiar with Alfie Kohn’s book ‘Punished by Rewards’ or his
> general thesis that “extrinsic motivators in the workplace are not only
> ineffective but often positively counterproductive”. Generally speaking
> the idea is if you offer incentives this will demotivate and stifle
> creativity. There are other authors who agree with Kohnyet the
> prevailing thought appears to be swinging away from such a view.
Julian, here’s the deal. Kohn is a writer, and has no training in research
or the interpretation of research. He over-extends his conclusions beyond
the data. I took the liberty of looking at some of the studies he cited to
support his contention. Several I looked at could actually be interpreted
as disproving some of his contentions. Others simple weren’t relevant or
were badly designed.