Punished by Rewards cover art

Punished by Rewards

The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise, and Other Bribes

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Punished by Rewards

By: Alfie Kohn
Narrated by: Alfie Kohn
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About this listen

The basic strategy we use for raising children, teaching students, and managing workers can be summarized in six words: Do this and you'll get that. We dangle goodies (from candy bars to sales commissions) in front of people in much the same way we train the family pet.

Drawing on a wealth of psychological research, Alfie Kohn points the way to a more successful strategy based on working with people instead of doing things to them. "Do rewards motivate people?" asks Kohn. "Yes. They motivate people to get rewards." Seasoned with humor and familiar examples, Punished by Rewards presents an argument unsettling to hear but impossible to dismiss.

©1993 Alfie Kohn (P)2017 Tantor Parenting & Families Personal Development Personal Success Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Relationships Witty Motivation

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Critic reviews

"A clear, convincing demonstration of the shortcomings of pop-behaviorism, written with style, humor, and authority." ( Kirkus)
All stars
Most relevant
I read the book 7 years ago. I couldn’t agree with and support this approach any more. Rewards & punishments annihilate any chance of humans feeling motivated or moved to do things. A must read.

A must read for anyone hoping to use respectful upbringing, teaching and/or management

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It's a bit long and repeats itself at times, but really drives the point that rewards in any shape or form aren't good for intrinsic motivation and the impact that has on various aspects of our lives. Recommend!

What you thought you knew about rewards but didn't

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How sad that the evidence against reward and punishment continues to fall upon deaf ears in western society. Change can be such a slow process. Drip, drip, drip though is better than nothing.
Alfie John is a greater narrator. Entertaining, amusing and wise.

As relevant today (2018) as it was then (1993).

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this is one I will listen to on repeat to put in to practice what I have learned here.

extremely thought provoking - something for every parent, teacher and manager.

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This is one of those books that confirms a suspicion that you can't quite articulate. I read this after reading one of Alfie Kohn's other books 'Unconditional Parenting', which I absolutely love. When it comes to parenting advice, I have learned to only trust the writings of those authors whose works are backed up by actual research, rather than solely opinion based. Alfie Kohn's books are all meticulously researched and many research studies are cited in the book. You just can't ignore the evidence that punishments and rewards are detrimental to intrinsic motivation, and have no place in the classroom, or home. I am fairly terrified at the prospect of sending my child, who has such a beautiful and natural love of learning, to school, for fear that stupid incentive programmes will gradually destroy this natural urge to learn. I am seriously considering home education as a result of reading Alfie Kohn's books among many others that address issues around how our education systems are formulated.

Having said that it's strongly evidence-based, the book is not at all dry. Alfie Kohn has an excellent sense of humour which really comes across and makes this an immensely readable book, anyone who's seen his youtube videos will know this. It's fantastic that the author himself narrates the book as his dryness really comes across.

Like 'Unconditional Parenting', I feel this book is a must-read for all parents, teachers and those with an interest in raising children, although its principles are also applied to businesses and organisations. It might be an uncomfortable read for those who have relied on punishments and rewards but it's never too late to change.

I was so happy to find this as an audiobook as I have very little time for 'actual reading' but can listen to audiobooks while working.

Eye-opening and insightful evidence-based book

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