Dissonance, Reflection and Reframing: Unpacking the Black Box of Motivation Internalization

Abstract

Self-determination theory (SDT) suggests that motivation internalization is a proactive process in which people ‘take into themselves’ the reason for engaging in a task. This has important managerial implications because internalized motivation is beneficial for individual and group performance and wellbeing. Yet we know little about how individuals internalize their own motivation nor why individuals internalize their motivation for some tasks and not others. Through interviews with 40 employees in two charities I found that motivation internalization occurred through a process of reflection and cognitive reframing across three process narratives: developmental, opportunity-enhancing, and prosocial internalization. Motivation internalization was triggered by cognitive dissonance arising from conflicting action tendencies and energized by the need to resolve motivational inconsistency or guilt. The source of this dissonance drives different process narratives, which are also associated with different behavioural and attitudinal outcomes. This research provides a deeper understanding of the proactive nature of motivation internalization and offers opportunities to integrate different theoretical perspectives on work motivation, which have traditionally been seen as conflicting.