Ability to discriminate task-intrinsic from task-extrinsic sentences, and changes in choices of such sentences under differential verbal reinforcement, were investigated in 48 intrinsically motivated and 48 extrinsically motivated children. On each of 75 trials, two sentences were presented simultaneously to each. S. One of the sentences connoted task-intrinsic motivation and the other connoted task-extrinsic motivation. Ss' task was to choose one of the sentences in each pair and to read it aloud. One-third of the children in each group were socially reinforced (“good”) for choosing sentences indicative of intrinsic motivation; one-third were socially reinforced by choosing sentences indicative of extrinsic motivation; one-third were reinforced noncontingently. Children in the contingent reinforcement groups were able to discriminate the motivational statements, as reflected by significant effects of the contingent reinforcement on the frequency of their choices. Implications for a strategy for training persons to behave in a task-oriented manner are discussed.
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