Arena: Applied Critical Thinking
Rewards and Punishments
Introduction
The extrinsic motivators in our culture have a huge impact on our thinking. We are signaled to think this, to not think that
– or even to look away and not think at all. Until we awaken to how we are being manipulated, we will not develop true self-determination and freedom. Intrinsic motivation, living from the inside out based on our values and purposes, fuels a life of meaning.
We can rise above external rewards and punishments.
Rewards and Punishments have become almost universal, as people set up contingencies for our behaviors in our society and economy. This turns us from subjects who can act into objects who are acted upon; it dehumanizes us. Reflecting on this can be upsetting and disturbing, as it calls our motivation and our perceptions of our own freedom into question.