Motivation Myth Busters

What does science tell us about motivation? This book challenges common myths about motivation and offers readers strategies for successfully motivating themselves and others.

Many unscientific and inaccurate ideas about motivation persist because they seem so logical, simple, or appealing. For example, we may say that someone is “unmotivated” and assume that this is just part of their personality, whereas in reality everyone is motivated and it’s more likely that their inaction is related to their interests or to their environment.

This book reveals the scientific truth about motivation. Readers will learn to identify and debunk ten persistent myths about motivation—for example, that visualizing success leads to success, that competition increases motivation for everyone, and that rewards are the best way to enhance motivation—and replace those myths with accurate knowledge that will help them take positive steps toward their goals.

Each chapter uses cutting-edge psychological research and theory to offer scientifically supported strategies for boosting motivation in a variety of contexts including school, work, health, and parenting.

Acknowledgements

Introduction: Ten Myths About Motivation and the Science That Busts Them

• Chapter 1. You Are Motivated, and So Is Everyone Else
• Chapter 2. There Are More Effective Motivators than Rewards
• Chapter 3. Competition Can Actually Be Demotivating
• Chapter 4. Motivation Alone is Not Enough For Success
• Chapter 5. Visualizing Success Won’t Get You There
• Chapter 6. Don’t Wait for Motivation to Strike
• Chapter 7. We Need Help Accurately Assessing Our Abilities
• Chapter 8. Structure Can Increase Motivation
• Chapter 9. Telling People They Are Smart Can Backfire
• Chapter 10. It’s Not Just You—Structural Inequities Decrease Motivation

Conclusion: Your Turn: Putting the Science of Motivation to Use

Bonus Chapter A: The Complexity of Motivation and Why We Struggle With It

Bonus Chapter B: Where Motivation Myths Come From, Why They Stick Around, and How to Bust Them

References

About the Authors

Index

Wendy S. Grolnick, PhD, is professor of psychology at Clark University, an expert on motivation, and one of the country's leading parenting researchers. She has conducted pioneering studies on the role parents and teachers play in children’s motivation and achievement. She has published more than 90 articles in scholarly journals and authored The Psychology of Parental Control: How Well-Meant Parenting Backfires and Pressured Parents, Stressed-Out Kids: Dealing with Competition While Raising a Successful Child, and coedited Retrospect and Prospect in the Psychological Study of Families.

Dr. Grolnick’s work has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the William T. Grant Foundation, and the Spencer Foundation. Dr. Grolnick is a member of the American Psychological Association’s Committee on Children, Youth and Families and the Coalition for Psychology in Schools and Education.

Benjamin C. Heddy, PhD, is associate professor of educational psychology in the Jeannine Rainbolt College of Education at the University of Oklahoma, where he is the director of the Motivation, Out-of-school, Value, and Engagement (MOVE) research lab. His research focuses on cognitive and motivational aspects of learning including engagement, academic emotions, interest development, and learning activities that occur in everyday experience. He also studies the mechanisms of conceptual, emotional, and attitudinal change. His research has been published in Educational Psychologist, the Journal of Engineering Education, Science Education, and Psychology Today.

Dr. Heddy currently serves as the president of the Scholarly Consortium for Innovative Psychology in Education (SCIPIE).

Frank C. Worrell, PhD, is a distinguished professor in the Berkeley School of Education at the University of California, Berkeley, where he serves as faculty director of the School Psychology Program and the Academic Talent Development Program. He also holds an affiliate appointment in the Social and Personality Area in the Department of Psychology. His research interests include adolescence, ethnic and racial identity, talent development, and time perspective.

Coeditor of Achieving College Dreams, Talent Development as a Framework for Gifted Education, the Psychology of High Performance, and The Cambridge Handbook of Applied School Psychology, he is author of over 170 journal articles and 80 book chapters.

Dr. Worrell was the 2022 president of APA.

Get ready to rethink many of your assumptions about motivation. With clear evidence and vivid examples, the authors reveal why you often misjudge your own potential, visualization might not help you reach your goals, and you don’t have to wait for motivation to strike to get started.
—Adam Grant, PhD, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Hidden Potential and Think Again; host of the podcast Re:Thinking

Motivation Myth Busters is essential reading for any individual, team, or organization trying to make progress and move forward. Its rigorous examination of the science of motivation will give you a fresh perspective not just on high performance, but on the human condition itself.
—Daniel H. Pink, JD, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Power of Regret; When; and Drive

This is an incredibly valuable book—for everyone. The authors, noted researchers in the field, show us how to spark and harness motivation to help us all reach our potential. In the process they dislodge common myths that have held people back for decades. It has my highest recommendation!
—Carol Dweck, PhD, Lewis & Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology, Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States

This book is about three of my favorite topics: science, motivation, and myth-busting, and all in one place! With an easy writing style and relatable vignettes, Grolnick, Heddy, and Worrell demystify what motivates us and separate fact from fiction. They provide helpful advice for individuals, students, parents, and teachers. If you are struggling with your own motivation or want to motivate others, this book is for you.
—Gale M. Sinatra, PhD, Stephen H. Crocker Chair and Distinguished Professor of Education and Psychology, Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States

This book is extraordinarily good. Demystifying myths is a very clever way to engage readers, making this book both useful and enjoyable for teachers, coaches, parents, and professors. I plan to use it in my future teacher training courses.
—Jacquelynne S. Eccles, PhD, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States

Written by true experts in psychology, Motivation Myth Busters helps dispel mistaken folk wisdom and outdated science about how we motivate others and even ourselves. Great reading for leaders, teachers, coaches, parents, and anybody who wants to move others to act.
—Richard M. Ryan, PhD, Professor, Institute for Positive Psychology and Education, Australian Catholic University, North Sydney, Australia; Distinguished Professor, College of Education, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea

The authors provide an interesting and up-to-date review of recent advances in the field of motivation psychology that includes more than a dozen empirically validated ideas for how to reach our personal goals while also maintaining our well-being. The authors also offer suggestions for how we can help others to work through motivational problems so that they can reach their goals and enhance their lives.
—Richard Koestner, PhD, Professor of Psychology and Director of The Human Motivation Lab, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada