T1 112008121 Full text

INVESTIGATION INTO INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION
OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT HIGH GRADE POINT AVERAGE (GPA)
STUDENTS

THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan

Fika Apriliana
112008121

ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
SATYA WACANA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
SALATIGA
2013

INVESTIGATION INTO INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION
OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT HIGH GRADE POINT AVERAGE (GPA)
STUDENTS

THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan

Fika Apriliana
112008121

ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
SATYA WACANA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
SALATIGA
2013
i

INVESTIGATION INTO INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION
OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT HIGH GRADE POINT AVERAGE (GPA)
STUDENTS

THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan

Fika Apriliana
112008121

Approved by:

ii

COPYRIGHT STATEMENT

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Copyright@ 2013. Fika Apriliana and Hendro S. Husada, M. A.
All rights reserved. No part of this thesis may be reproduced by any means without the

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, 2013

Investigation into Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation of English
Department High Grade Point Average (GPA) Students
Fika Apriliana
ABSTRACT
A series of research undertaken have revealed some interesting aspects regarding the effects

of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation toward students’ achievement. Students with high
achievement were typically believed as students who had high Grade Point Average (GPA).
Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate intrinsic and extrinsic motivation level of
English Department high GPA students. This study also aimed to find out how the intrinsic
and extrinsic motivation levels of the ED High GPA students correspond with their GPA.
Work Preference Inventory (WPI), proposed by Amabile, Hill, Hennessey and Tighe (1994)
was used in measuring students’ level of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The questionnaire
was administered to 30 fourth-year ED students who had high GPA. The interpretation of
intrinsic and extrinsic mean score results suggested by Degang (2010) and descriptive
narrative analysis were used to analyze the data. The result of this study revealed that the
highest number of ED high GPA students were highly intrinsically motivated (73.33%) and
highly extrinsically motivated (56.57%). It was also found that student who had the highest
combination of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation level among all of students (High IMHighest EM) gained the highest average GPA (3.97). The result of this study suggested that
higher on both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation levels appeared to lead to higher academic
achievement. It is important to note that not only high level of intrinsic motivation, but also
extrinsic motivation, was found to be important in achieving academic success.
Keywords: intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, academic achievement, Grade Point
Average (GPA)
INTRODUCTION
“Learning is acquiring or getting knowledge of a subject or a skill by studying,

experiencing or doing instruction” (Brown, 2007, p. 7). In language learning, one of the
factors influencing the process is motivation. A student's motivation has frequently been
reported to be the most critical factor for success in the language learning process. Motivation
has been widely accepted by teachers and researchers as one of the key factors influencing
the success of language learning (Ely, 1986; Dornyei, 1994; Williams & Burden, 1997 in Li
& Pan, 2009). “Motivation is concerned with one’s reasons for learning the language, the
strategies used to achieve these goals, the effort put into learning and one’s ability to sustain
that effort” (Richards, 1994, p. 4). Brown (2007) states that motivation is a star player in the
1

cast of characters connected to language learning around the world. It plays an important role
of success and failure.
Successful students can be determined by their achievement in learning. Upon
examination of the motivation or achievement literature, there does not appear to be one
specific or universal definition of academic achievement. For the purposes of this study, it
will be defined as a result which is accomplished by an individual after she or he
accomplished some assignments in the school setting (Azwar, 1999). In a college setting,
academic achievement is typically assessed by the use of teacher grades which are
accumulated into Grade Point Average (GPA). GPA is the accumulation of student’s grade
over certain semesters. Higher GPA, with a maximum of 4.00, indicates better achievement

than lower GPA. However, it should be noted that IQ tests are usually not included in
analyses relative to achievement research to ensure the uniqueness and significance of the
other relationships being studied (Howse, 1999 in Broussard, 2002).
Gardner (1985) claims that motivation has a direct effect on language achievement.
There are four reasons why motivation really affects students’ achievement (Donald, 2008).
First, motivation helps students get started. Sometimes, it will be hard for students to start
learning new knowledge and new skills of language through new subjects in a new semester.
Many questions will appear in students’ mind. Motivation helps students get started because
motivation involves the student’s reason for attempting to acquire the language (Schumann,
1978). Therefore, realizing the reason can help students to set the goal and plan strategies to
achieve the goal. Second, motivation helps students keep moving in language learning
process. Since motivated students have an effort put into learning and also have ability to
sustain that effort, the students can face difficulties and challenges in the process of learning.
Moreover, Hedge (2000) emphasizes that motivation is crucial in the classroom, whether
learners arrive with it or whether they acquire it through classroom experience. Motivation
escorts the process of learning.
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Third, motivation makes students do more than necessary. Motivation leads students
to have an effort to achieve the goals, consciously or unconsciously students will do better

and more than necessary. The students will explore and use all their knowledge and skills in
language learning process. Reece and Walker (1997) express that a less capable student who
is highly motivated can achieve a greater success than the more intelligent student who is not
well motivated. Fourth, motivation makes the journey fun. Students who do not have
motivation might think that the journey to succeed is long and difficult. Differently, students
who are motivated will see the long journey as an enjoyable travel. Motivation enables
students to endure such difficult times (Donald, 2008). A highly motivated individual will
enjoy learning the language and will strive to learn the language (Gardner, 1985).
In language learning, motivation determines the extent of the students’ active
involvement (Ngeow, 1998). Similar idea is pointed out by Oxford and Shearin (1994) that
motivation determines the extent of active, personal involvement in language learning.
Motivation leads the students to be self-directed. A motivated student begins to want a
greater responsibility for their own learning. Self-directed students gradually gain greater
involvement and proficiency (Oxford, 1990).
Motivation has strong effect on students’ achievement in numerous studies. Bank and
Finlapson (1980) concluded that successful students were found to have significantly higher
motivation for achievement than unsuccessful students did. Dornyei and Noels (1994)
revealed that achievement in English language of Hungarian students was significantly
related to motivational indices. Johnson (1996) found that academic achievement was highly
correlated with students’ motivation. A quantitative study done by Sikhwari (2007) at the

University of Venda in South Africa, suggested that highly motivated students tried to
achieve academic success through attending classes regularly and participating in class
discussions, which resulted in their getting higher marks in tests and examination.

3

When studying motivation, it is useful to distinguish between two basic types of
motivation. Harmer (1998) mentions that motivation can be separated into two main types:
intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are two major types with
which college students are engaged in the process of learning new knowledge and skills.
Intrinsic motivation basically comes from the students themselves such as their own goals
and the needs to learn (e.g. I have direction and goals in learning English, I want my study
provides me with opportunities to develop my knowledge and skills in English). If you are

motivated intrinsically, it means that you are doing something because you want to do it or
because you make your own choice to do it. Deci and Ryan (1985) state that intrinsic
motivation concerns behavior performed for its own sake in order to experience pleasure and
satisfaction such as the joy of doing a particular activity or satisfying one's curiosity. Dev
(1997) views that student who are intrinsically motivated will not need any type of reward or
incentive to complete a task. This type of student is more likely to complete the chosen task

and eager by the challenging nature of an activity.
While extrinsic motivation comes from outside of the students such as parents,
environment, and class condition. Extrinsic motivation involves performing a behavior as a
means to an end, that is, to receive some extrinsic reward (e.g. good grades) or to avoid
punishment (e.g. I am keenly aware of the goals I have for getting good grades) (Deci &
Ryan, 1985; Dev, 1997). For students, extrinsic motivation variable is the sum of a
recognition, grades, and competition in learning (Wigfield, 1997). As suggested by Gest,
Rulison, Davidson and Welsh (2008), grade was regarded as tangible reward, while good
academic reputation, praise and recognition from others were regarded as intangible reward.
Ormrod (2008) says that both types of motivation may not have exactly the same
effect on student learning and performance at the college level. Learners who are interested in
learning task and outcomes for their own sake (intrinsic) rather than for reward (extrinsic) are
likely to become more successful and effective learners (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Gottfried,
4

1990). Students who are intrinsically motivated to learn are still believed to be more
persistent in language learning, and this persistence contributes to students’ achievement.
According to Ushioda (1996), students who are intrinsically motivated can experience greater
pleasure and emotional involvement because the rewards generated from intrinsic motivation
are usually positive feelings such as enjoyment, pleasure, satisfaction, and self-indulgence
and students can be always motivated by those internal rewards from the learning itself to
persist learning. While for students who are extrinsically motivated, they “may work
efficiently in the short term in response to external rewards and incentives, but their
motivation is unlikely to sustain itself autonomously if the learning experience does not
generate internal or intrinsic rewards” (ibid, p. 22). Those students who work for extrinsic
rewards are comparatively passive because if the external reinforcement is not available, they
have no reason to do it and they may remain stagnant. Even, these students may give up
learning once the external pressure no longer exists (Noels, Clement & Pelletier, 2001).
The key of extrinsic motivator is rewards, which can either be tangible or intangible.
For example, if students excel, they will attain a good academic reputation and receive praise
and recognition from their significant others, which is regarded as an intangible reward.
Students who are perceived as having a good academic reputation may often be asked for
academic help and are associated with students who excel (Gest et al., 2008). Deci and Ryan
(1985) found that using rewards in an academic setting resulted in a significant improvement
in students’ motivational levels. Moneta and Spada (2009) suggest that individuals who are
extrinsically motivated by an expected reward increase their effort to complete the task and
earn an incentive.
Besides the controversy of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, Lumsden and Linda
(1994) investigated that passion to learn seemed to shrink as children grew. As children grow,
learning sometimes becomes compulsion than pleasure. The similar idea is revealed by
Goldberg (1994) in Broussard (2002), who points out that an intrinsic orientation toward
5

education switches to a more extrinsic orientation as children increase in age. On the
contrary, Zemke and Zemke (1988) argue that there is transition from extrinsic to intrinsic
motivation in the college classroom. The students need to come to class to learn because
learning is intrinsically motivating, rewarding, exciting and of real benefit to the students.
Research on adult learners indicates that learners are most motivated when they see relevance
to their learning, when they ownership in the process and when they feel they can meet their
interests and needs (ibid).
It should be noted that some studies have found significant relationship between
specific types of motivation and academic achievement. Intrinsic motivation was found to
have a significant effect on students learning and performance in an empirical study (Deci et
al., 2004). Several studies have shown positive correlations between intrinsic motivation and
academic achievement (e.g. Gottfried, 1985, 1990; Harter & Connell, 1984; Henderlong &
Lepper, 1997; Llyod & Barenblatt, 1984). Afzal, Ali, Khan and Hamid (2010) found that
students who were intrinsically motivated performed much better academically than students
who were extrinsically motivated. Extrinsically motivated students might perform very well
in one semester or quiz to achieve a certain reward or goal and then next semester might
show poor performance because the reward did not exist anymore. Their performance did not
remain constant as a result. While, intrinsically motivated students were truly interested in
learning and in achieving high goals. Their overall performance was consistent. On the other
hand, recent research conducted to with college-student populations revealed that students
who had high extrinsic motivation had positive achievement (Barron & Harrackiewicz, 2001;
Elliot & McGregor, 2001; Harackiewicz, Barron, Pintrich, Elliot, & Trash, 2002 in Lepper,
Corpus & Iyengar, 2005). Students who were particularly focused on the extrinsic
consequences of their behaviors did particularly well on objective indicators of performance.
Moreover, a study conducted amongst students in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa,
found that factors leading to academic achievement occurred interactively (Dass-Brailsford,
6

2005). For example, family pressure might contribute to a decrease in students’ motivational
levels. However, students who were highly intrinsically motivated might counteract these
negative factors from their families (ibid, 2005). Muller and Louw (2004) assert that extrinsic
factors, such as a supportive social environment can foster intrinsic motivation. The
individual’s perception of the reward and the task, however, is more important in deciding the
amount of effort put into achieving academic performance (Davis, Winsler & Middleton,
2006). Intrinsic and extrinsic variables are likely to interact to strengthen the overall
motivational profile of an individual in reaching their desired performance target (Davis et
al., 2006; Muller & Louw, 2004).
The studies reviewed above deal with motivation, particularly focus on intrinsic and
extrinsic motivation and their effect toward achievement in learning. A significant target of
this study is to help English-medium institution such as English Department (ED) to
understand the individual difference, the psychological process of learning foreign language
and to come up with effective teaching methods to promote students’ intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation as Heping (2001) in Li and Pan (2009) suggested. The result of this study may
provide useful guidelines for ED students especially students who are not fully aware of the
importance of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation toward their achievement. High GPA
students who are considered as successful students may be good model for other students
who are still trying to find out the best way to be successful in language learning. To the best
knowledge of the researcher, no published study has been yet conducted specifically to
investigate intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of high GPA students. Therefore, considering
the importance of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, the present research seeks answers to the
following research questions:
1. What is the intrinsic motivation level of the ED high GPA students?
2. What is the extrinsic motivation level of the ED high GPA students?
3. How do their intrinsic and extrinsic motivation levels correspond with their GPA?
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THE STUDY
Context of the Study

The context of this study was English Department (ED) of Satya Wacana Christian
University (SWCU). It is located in a small town of Salatiga, Central Java, Indonesia. As a
foreign language, English was not actively used in oral communication outside the class.
However, English was used as a medium of instruction inside the classrooms in ED.
Participants

The participants were 30 fourth-year students who were studying English at English
Department of Satya Wacana Christian University. All of them originally were Indonesians.
The participants’ age ranged from 21 to 23 years of age. Based on the university standard of
Grade Point Average (GPA), which was formed of students’ grade over certain semesters,
students were classified into two of four categories: good (GPA 2.00-2.74), satisfying (GPA
2.75-2.99), very satisfying (GPA 3.00-3.49), cumlaude (GPA 3.50-4.00). Of the four
categories, only two categories which were considered as high GPA students and selected to
participate in this study: very satisfying category (n=15) and cumlaude category (n=15).
When this research was being conducted, the participants had been studying for three and a
half years. According to the English Department curriculum flowchart, the participants had
taken at least 125 credits.
Data Collection

Amabile et al., (1994) questionnaire, which is known as Work Preference Inventory
(WPI) provides measurement of students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The
questionnaire seeks to assess the extent to which students see themselves as either more
intrinsically or more extrinsically motivated in school or at work by asking them to report on
their usual motivations for a variety of diagnostic situations.
The original questionnaire consisted of thirty statements. For the purposes of this
study, the questionnaire was adapted. Ten items from the original questionnaire which dealt
8

with enjoyment, self-expression and ideas were not used because the items were not directly
related to students’ achievement. Therefore, the adapted questionnaire only consisted of 20
items: 10 intrinsic motivation items (2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 13, 18, 19) and 10 extrinsic
motivation items (1, 3, 5, 8, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20). The statements in WPI were also divided
into two types of statements, positive and negative statements. The positive statements were
in the number 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20. The negative
statements were in the number 7, 11 and 12. All the statements were written in the English
language in order to keep intended meaning of each statement. Especially, the participants
were English major students who could read and understand English well. The adapted
questionnaire was designed on a 5-point likert-scale ranging from strongly disagree (1 point)
to strongly agree (5 points) for positive statements and strongly disagree (5 points) to
strongly agree (1 point) for negative statements. Moreover, the questionnaire format

consisted of participants’ data (credits and GPA) and questions items (see Appendix).
In order to get students’ names who had very satisfying and cumlaude GPA, I
contacted fourth-year students’ academic advisors and university staff who had responsibility
to administer students’ grades. After getting, grouping and selecting the students’ names, I
asked the students’ permission and willingness to be my participants. Before going to the real
questionnaire distribution, I piloted the questionnaire first to five fourth-year English
Department students to make sure that each statement was easily understood by the
participants. After getting the piloting data and being sure that there was no confusing
statement, the questionnaire on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation question items was
distributed to 30 fourth-year high GPA English Department students.
Data Analysis

The data which were gathered by questionnaire would be inputted and calculated on
the computer sheets. Firstly, I classified each response whether it belonged to intrinsic
motivation or extrinsic motivation. I also classified the responses whether they belonged to
9

positive or negative statements. The scoring for positive and negative statements would be
different. Table below showed the scoring for positive and negative statements.
Table 1. Scoring for Positive and Negative Statements of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

Level of Agreement and Disagreement
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Neutral
Agree
Strongly Agree

Scoring
Positive Negative
Statement Statement
1
5
2
4
3
3
4
2
5
1

To answer the first and second research questions, the intrinsic and extrinsic mean
scores of each participant were calculated individually. The individual intrinsic mean score
was calculated by totaling all scores of intrinsic motivation items of each individual
participant had and divided by 10 (the total number of intrinsic motivation items). The
individual extrinsic mean score was also the sum of all scores of extrinsic motivation items
that each individual participant had divided by 10 (the total number of extrinsic motivation
items). After getting the mean score, each of the participants was categorized into a certain
level of motivation based on the following criteria by Degang (2010). The higher mean score
indicated the higher motivational level and the dominant type of motivation, and vice versa.
Table 2. Interpretation of Score Results in Terms of Motivation

Score Range

Motivational level

4.50 - 5.00

Highest

3.50 - 4.49

High

2.50 - 3.49

Moderate

1.50 - 2.49

Low

1.0 - 1.49

Lowest

The mean score and motivation level of each participant would be presented in table.
Afterward, the number of participants who had a certain level of motivation would be
10

counted, grouped and presented in the table. From this point, the intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation level of the ED high GPA students could be revealed.
As individual, the students’ level might be high on both, medium on both, low on
both, high on one and medium on the other, and so forth since there is no automatic relation
between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (Lepper, Corpus, & Iyengar, 2005). It was worth
noticing that students’ levels of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation varied between one and
another. In correspondence with GPA and to answer the third research question, the students
who had the same level of intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation were grouped and
made into categories. The average intrinsic motivation mean score, average extrinsic mean
score and average GPA of students who belong to each category were calculated. The result
was presented in table showing the category based on individual motivation level with its
average intrinsic motivation mean score, average extrinsic motivation mean score and
average GPA. From the table, it could be seen how the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
levels of the ED high GPA students correspond with their GPA. It could be clearly seen
students with which level of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation that could gain the highest to
the lowest average GPA. At last, I analyzed the results using descriptive narrative analysis.
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation

To answer the first research question “What is the intrinsic motivation level of the ED
high GPA students?” and the second research question “What is the extrinsic motivation level
of the ED high GPA students?”, it was found that the participants were at various levels of
intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation level varied between high and
moderate since none of the participant (0.00%) was at the highest, low and lowest level of
intrinsic motivation. 22 participants (73.33%) were at the high level and 8 participants
(26.67%) were at the moderate level of intrinsic motivation. While, extrinsic motivation level

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was more varied, ranging from highest to low. From 30 participants, 1 participant (3.33%)
was at the highest level, 17 participants (56.67%) were at the high level, 11 participants
(36.67%) were at the moderate level, 1 participant (3.33%) was at the low level and none of
them (0.00%) was at the lowest level of extrinsic motivation. It was clearly seen that the
highest number of ED high GPA students were at the high level of intrinsic motivation
(73.33%) and the high level of extrinsic motivation (56.67%). The following table showed
the numbers of ED high GPA students who had certain level of intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation.
Table 3. The Number of ED High GPA Students Who Had Certain Level of Intrinsic and
Extrinsic Motivation

Motivational
Level
Highest
High
Moderate
Low
Lowest
Total

Types of Motivation
Intrinsic Motivation
Extrinsic Motivation
Number of
Number of
Percentage
Percentage
participants
participants
0
0.00%
1 participant
3.33%
22 participants
73.33%
17 participants
56.67%
8 participants
26.67%
11 participants
36.67%
0
0.00%
1 participant
3.33%
0
0.00%
0
0.00%
30 participants
100%
30 participants
100%

The results of this study supported Gottfried’s explanation (1985) that students who
were reported to have high academic intrinsic motivation had significantly high school
achievement. Also, the result seemed to prove some previous research on college-student
populations that students who had high extrinsic motivation had positive achievement
(Barron & Harrackiewicz, 2001; Elliot & McGregor, 2001; Harackiewicz, Barron, Pintrich,
Elliot, & Trash, 2002 in Lepper, Corpus & Iyengar, 2005).
Goldberg (1994) in Broussard (2002) points out that an intrinsic orientation toward
education switches to a more extrinsic orientation as children increase in age. On the
contrary, Zemke and Zemke (1988) argue that there is transition from extrinsic to intrinsic
motivation in the college classroom. While, based on this study’s result of intrinsic and

12

extrinsic motivation level which was conducted in college setting, it seemed that there might
not be full transition from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation. Specifically, the variation of
extrinsic motivation level revealed that extrinsic motivation might not be thrown off in the
transition process. It was important to notice that there was mixture of intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation in college life.
In comparing two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, it had been
found that from 30 students, 22 students were at high level of intrinsic motivation while only
17 students were at high level of extrinsic motivation. Even though 1 student who was at the
highest level was taken into account, it only became 18 students. The number of students who
were at high level of intrinsic motivation was a little bit higher than the number of students
who were at high level of extrinsic motivation. It showed that the students were more
intrinsically motivated than extrinsically motivated, implying that more students learning
English for internal reasons instead of for external reasons. This finding was consistent with
Qin and Wen’s (2002) findings of China’s high achiever students who were more
intrinsically motivated. The result of this study was, however, contradictory to the belief of
other previous researchers who found that high achievers were more extrinsically motivated
(Bidin et al., 2009; Zhao, 2011).
Correspondence of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Level with GPA

To answer the third research question “How do their intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
levels correspond with their GPA?”, it was worth noticing that, as individual, each
participant’s intrinsic and extrinsic level might be high on both, medium on both, low on
both, high on one and medium on the other, and so forth. Therefore, intrinsic and extrinsic
level of participants in this study also varied between one and another. All the varieties of
participants’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation level were made into categories. From the
result of this study, there was category High IM-Highest EM as 1 participant (3.33%) had
high intrinsic motivation and very high extrinsic motivation. Category High IM-High EM
13

appeared as 13 students (43.34%) had high intrinsic motivation and high extrinsic motivation.
Category High IM-Moderate EM also appeared as 7 participants (23.33%) had high intrinsic
and moderate extrinsic motivation. Hereafter, category Moderate IM-High EM appeared as 4
participants (13.33%) had moderate intrinsic motivation and high extrinsic motivation. The
other category, category Moderate IM-Moderate EM appeared as 4 participants (13.33%) had
moderate intrinsic and moderate extrinsic motivation, and the rest, category High IM-Low
EM appeared as 1 participant (3.33%) had high intrinsic motivation and low extrinsic
motivation. Table below showed the six categories with its average intrinsic motivation mean
score, average extrinsic motivation mean score and average GPA. The table was made by
considering the highest to the lowest average GPA.
Table 4. The Variety of Individual Motivation Level in Correspondence with GPA

Category based on
Individual Motivation Level

Number of Participants

High IM - Highest EM
1 participant (3.33%)
High IM - High EM
13 participants (43.34%)
High IM - Moderate EM
7 participants (23.34%)
Moderate IM - High EM
4 participants (13.33%)
Moderate IM - Moderate EM 4 participants (13.33%)
High IM - Low EM
1 participant (3.33%)
(IM= Intrinsic Motivation; EM= Extrinsic Motivation)

Average
Average
Mean
Mean
Average
Score for
Score for
GPA
Intrinsic
Extrinsic
Motivation Motivation
3.70
4.80
3.97
3.70
3.80
3.51
3.87
3.11
3.44
3.17
3.80
3.40
3.10
3.15
3.39
3.90
2.40
3.18

Students with similar level of intrinsic motivation but different level of extrinsic
motivation. Student with high intrinsic motivation and the highest extrinsic motivation (High

IM-Highest EM) got the highest average GPA (3.97). The student who got the highest
average GPA gave very positive responses toward extrinsic items related to grades,
recognition and competition in learning. That was why the student had very high extrinsic
motivation. The student of this category also gave positive responses toward intrinsic items
which dealt with goals, knowledge and skills, curiosity and challenge. Therefore, this student
had high intrinsic motivation. The intrinsic motivation did not reach the highest level because
14

of the student’s neutral responses toward intrinsic motivation items related to assignments.
Other students who had high intrinsic motivation specifically in category High IM-High EM,
High IM-Moderate EM, High IM-Low EM had similar responses to intrinsic motivation
items which dealt with goals, knowledge and skills, curiosity, challenge and assignments.
Since the similarity of the responses toward intrinsic motivation items, the responses
of students who belonged to category High IM-High EM, High IM-Moderate EM, High IMLow EM toward extrinsic motivation items would be revealed. At the second place, students
who belonged to category High IM-High EM gained average GPA 3.51. The students had
high extrinsic motivation since their positive responses toward extrinsic motivation items
related to grades. However, only a few numbers of the students in this category gave positive
responses toward items which dealt with recognition and competition in learning. Most of
them tended to give neutral responses. For instance, 8 students were neutral, 4 students
agreed and 1 student disagreed that they wanted other people to find out how good they really
could be at their study. Average GPA 3.44 was at third place gained by students who had
high intrinsic motivation and moderate extrinsic motivation (High IM-Moderate EM). The
students in this category still gave positive responses toward extrinsic motivation items
related to grades. However, the students in this category started giving more negative
responses toward recognition items. From 7 students, 1 student was neutral, 2 students agreed
and 4 students disagreed that they were strongly motivated by the recognition they could earn
from other people. Even, most of the students gave negative responses toward competition in
learning item. 1 student was neutral, 6 students disagreed and none of them agreed that
success meant doing better than other English Department students.
The student who had high level of intrinsic motivation and low extrinsic motivation
(High IM-Low EM) gave very negative responses toward extrinsic motivation items related
to grades, recognition and competition in learning. Interestingly, the student who belonged to
this category gained the lowest average GPA (3.18). This finding was contradictory to the
15

belief of other previous researchers (Deci & Ryan, 2002; Harter, 1992) who stated that
students with a pattern of high intrinsic but low extrinsic motivation may far better than
others, largely because self-directed, persistent engagement results when students are free
from external concerns. Based on the result of this study, the student with pattern of high
intrinsic motivation but low extrinsic motivation was not better than others in the matter of
achievement.
Moreover, the students in the category High IM-Highest EM, High IM-High EM,
High IM-Moderate EM and High IM-Low EM showed that the lower the extrinsic motivation
they had, the lower average GPA they got in their study. It pointed out that extrinsic
motivation might play important role and give a significant impact on the students’
achievement. It might be because students who relate extrinsic factors to positive future goals
are more engaged in school (Farrell, 1994; O'Connor, 1997; Rowley, 2000) or because
students who are extrinsically motivated by an expected reward increase their effort to
complete the task and earn an incentive (Moneta & Spada, 2009). This result of this study did
not support some previous findings (Amabile, 1994; Biehler & Snowman, 1990; Deci, 1975;
Dweck, 1986) that extrinsic motivational factors were detrimental.
Students with similar level of extrinsic motivation but different level of intrinsic
motivation. Besides the students in the category High IM-Highest EM, High IM-High EM,

High IM-Moderate EM and High IM-Low EM, the students in category High IM-High EM
and Moderate IM-High EM who had same level of extrinsic motivation showed tendency of
having lower GPA if their intrinsic motivation level also got lower. Since students’ responses
in the category High IM-High EM (average GPA: 3.51) had been revealed before, students’
responses in the category Moderate IM-High EM would be revealed in this section. Students
in category Moderate IM-High EM (average GPA: 3.40) gave positive responses toward
intrinsic motivation items related to goals, knowledge and skills, curiosity. From 4 students, 2
students in this category gave positive responses and the other 2 students gave neutral
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responses toward intrinsic item related to challenge. Like the students in the category
Moderate IM-Moderate EM, the students in this category also gave negative responses
toward intrinsic items related to assignments. Therefore, they only had moderate level of
intrinsic motivation. The students’ responses toward extrinsic motivation items related to
grades, recognition and competition in learning were similar with those of the students in the
category High IM-High EM.
The result of the study, furthermore, showed that the higher the motivation level
especially on both motivation types, the higher grades the students could get in their study.
Not only that, it also showed that intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation occurred
interactively as what Dass-Brailsford (2005) found in her study. Intrinsic and extrinsic
variables are likely to interact to strengthen the overall motivational profile of an individual
in reaching their desired performance target (Davis et al., 2006; Muller & Louw, 2004).
Students with similar level of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Students who had

the same level of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation also experienced the same. The higher the
motivation level, the higher grades they could get in their study. The students who belonged
to the category High IM-High EM gained better GPAs than students who had moderate
intrinsic motivation and moderate extrinsic motivation whose average GPA was 3.39. The
students in the category Moderate IM-Moderate EM gave positive responses toward intrinsic
motivation items related to goals, knowledge and skills. However, most of them were neutral
toward intrinsic motivation items related to curiosity and challenge. From 4 students, 3
students were hesitant to agree and 1 student disagreed that they enjoyed trying to solve every
challenge they faced during their study. The student gave negative responses toward
assignments items. Most of them enjoyed simple and easy assignments rather than complex
and new assignments. Unlike the students who had high intrinsic motivation, all their
responses made them only got moderate level of intrinsic motivation. Moreover, their

17

responses toward extrinsic motivation items related to grades, competition in learning and
recognition were similar with the students’ responses in the category High IM-Moderate EM.
Higher level intrinsic motivation or extrinsic motivation? Regarding the variation of

students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation level as individual, there were two categories that
could be compared. Category High IM-Moderate EM could be compared with category
Moderate IM-High EM. The students who had high intrinsic motivation and moderate
extrinsic motivation (High IM-Moderate EM) were found to gain better GPAs than students
who had moderate intrinsic motivation and high extrinsic motivation (Moderate IM-High
EM). If students had to be in reversed condition of motivation level, higher level on intrinsic
motivation might be better than higher on extrinsic motivation. This supports Deci and
Ryan’s (1985) claim that learners who are interested in learning task and outcomes for their
own sake (intrinsic) rather than for reward (extrinsic) are likely to become more successful
and effective learners.
Overall, the result of this study showed the trend that the higher the motivation level
especially on both motivation types could make students get higher GPA. However, it could
not be guaranteed that a student who had higher level of motivation always got higher GPA,
since there were also many factors that influenced students’ learning. Based on the result of
this study, students who had high level of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation were
supposed to have higher GPA than students who had only moderate level of both intrinsic
and extrinsic motivation. However, in fact, participant 4 of this study who had moderate level
of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation gained better GPA (3.85), while participant 26 who
had high level of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation gained lower GPA (3.20). It also
happened in other categories.
CONCLUSION
The first aim of this study was to investigate the level of intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation of English Department high GPA students. The result of this study indicated that
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indeed intrinsic and extrinsic motivation played a pivotal role in students' academic
achievement. It was found that the highest numbers of the students, 22 students (73.33%)
were at the high level, 8 students (26.67%) were at the moderate level of and none of them
(0.00%) was at the highest, low and lowest level of intrinsic motivation. Similarly, the
highest numbers of the students, 17 students (56.67%) displayed high level of extrinsic
motivation. 1 participant (3.33%) was at the highest level, 11 participants (36.67%) were at
the moderate level, 1 participant (3.33%) was at the low level and none of them (0.00%) was
at the lowest level of extrinsic motivation.
This study was also undertaken to find out how the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
levels of the ED High GPA students correspond with their GPA. The average GPA revealed
that student with high intrinsic motivation and very high extrinsic motivation gained the
highest average GPA (3.97), followed by the students with high intrinsic motivation and high
extrinsic motivation (GPA: 3.51), then the students with high intrinsic motivation and
moderate extrinsic motivation (GPA: 3.44). At the fourth place, the students with moderate
intrinsic motivation and high extrinsic motivation got average GPA 3.40. Afterwards, the
students who had moderate intrinsic motivation and moderate extrinsic motivation got
average GPA 3.39. At last, student who had high intrinsic motivation and low extrinsic
motivation got the lowest average GPA (3.18). The result of this study suggested that higher
on both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation levels appear to lead to higher academic
achievement.
It has been further found that not only intrinsic motivation but also extrinsic
motivation was important in achieving academic success. Rewards (tangible and intangible)
gave good and big influence to students’ achievement but in order to get high achievement,
students had to desire, think and consider it by themselves. As Newman (1996) suggested that
in order for extrinsic motivators to be effective, the students must desire the rewards, and
understand that academic achievement is the only way of obtaining those rewards. The result
19

of this study revealed that if highly intrinsically students did not consider the extrinsic
motivators, the students would not have maximum achievement. Students might
simultaneously strive for good grades and for verification that they have fully mastered the
subject matter (Ormrod, 1998).
Arousing students’ motivation has become an important part in foreign language
teaching. In terms of the implications of this study, an increased focus on the enhancement of
students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation levels can positively affect students’ academic
achievement. Past studies have shown that to increase academic achievement and help
students achieve academic success; motivation (of some kind, or another) should be
encouraged by teachers and educators (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Gottfried, 1985). University
teachers should try as much as they could to motivate their students during instructions.
Moreover, the result of this study was in line with some previous findings which stated that
there was no reason for teachers to resist implementing incentive reward systems into the
classroom (Cameron & Pierce, 1994 in Deci & Ryan, 1996). The result of this study confirms
the use of extrinsic motivation in the classroom. It can be done, for instance, by giving
positive feedbacks such as praises and merit grades. Teachers should not hesitate in
promoting extrinsic motivation since it is important to promote the situations in which
rewards are offered.
Because of the limitation of the study, which is the small-scale number of the
participants (n=30), future study with larger group of students may be needed to confirm the
consistence of the study and to get more varied categories. The result of this study may not be
generalized for other various groups of students in different contexts, for example, students of
other majors and faculties within Satya Wacana Christian University or other universities.
Therefore the need to investigate intrinsic and extrinsic motivation among other students
group with different context still remains in order to determine their particular motivational

20

situations. Furthermore, further research can also be done to find out the effective ways of
promoting and increasing students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
I take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt thanks to all those who have contributed
to make this thesis a success. First and foremost, I give glory and honor to Almighty God for
His blessings, wisdom and guidance for enabling me to complete my thesis and my study in
ED.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude and deep appreciation to my supervisor,
Hendro S. Husada, M. A., for his helpful and warm encouragement, as well as his insightful
comments on my work from the beginning to the end of my thesis. I would also like to extend
my heartfelt thanks to my examiner, Anne I. Timotius, M. Ed., for her valuable knowledge
and suggestions to improve my thesis. I give my sincere thanks to the all ED lecturers who
have guided and taught me invaluable lessons for my future.
My biggest thanks to my beloved family: my father Ign. Suprihatin Harsono, my
mother Ign. Puji Rahandiyani, my brother Pramono Adi N., my sister Indah Retno A. and
Titiana Larasita. Their endless love and encouragement keep me warm and lead me to the
completion of my thesis and my study in ED. Special thanks goes to M. Muammar Dwi P.,
who always loves, supports and accompanies me. There are no words that can express what I
feel about you. I am also thankful to all my friends especially 2008 generation for their
togetherness and inspiration.
The completion of my thesis would not have been possible without the cooperation
from all participants. I am grateful to all of them for providing useful information for the data
analysis of my thesis. I express sincere thanks to many others whose names are not
mentioned here. Thank you all!

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