The Power to Overcome Failure

When a child is promised some kind of prize-such as candy, a toy, or money-for completing a task successfully, his or her drive to succeed often surges. But what effect does such carrot-dangling have on long-term motivation and progress? This program explores the relationship between rewards and human development, contrasting performance goals with learning goals. Simple observational experiments with babies, toddlers, and elementary- and middle-school students demonstrate that immediate gratification often leads to lower motivation and skill development-while focusing on the learning process and its more subtle rewards creates better academic results. (46 minutes)