Choice made people more motivated

The review

1. 01

   Who took part

   41 studies from 1974 to 2004, with children and adults. Each sample had between 19 and 186 people.

2. 02

   What they did

   People were given a choice. For example, they picked an activity, a version of a task, or a reward. They were compared with groups that had no choice or had choices made for them.

3. 03

   What happened

   Choice raised motivation, task performance and the feeling of being capable. Learning showed no clear difference. Published studies found bigger effects than unpublished ones. The authors' checks for missing studies suggest the motivation effect is about one third smaller than it looks, but still positive.

What the review found

1. HelpedMotivation

   Across 41 studies, people given a choice were more motivated than people with no choice.

   • Rule: Choose it yourselftested

   Pooled analysis of 46 studies · vs people who had no choice or less choice · ⚠ signs that small negative studies went unpublished

2. HelpedGoals

   Across 11 studies, people given a choice did better at the task than people with no choice.

   • Rule: Choose it yourselftested

   Pooled analysis of 13 studies · vs people who had no choice or less choice · behaviour was recorded

3. HelpedMotivation

   Across 7 studies, people given a choice felt more capable at the task than people with no choice.

   • Rule: Choose it yourselftested

   Pooled analysis of 8 studies · vs people who had no choice or less choice · they rated themselves · ⚠ signs that small negative studies went unpublished

Source