Extrinsic motivation in Singapore

In Singapore, I think extrinsic motivation is largely employed to control its citizens. As stated in JiaHao’s post, Singapore is often referred to by its citizens as a “fine” country, fine here being a sum of money required to be paid as a penalty for an offense. It is evident in daily life, these fines. We have fines for littering, vandalism, illegal parking and even eating on public transport systems. Judging by the clean streets of Singapore, and the odorless transport system, it is evident that these fines do work, and they work well. Besides using money to ensure the law is abided by, Singapore has also used money to motivate its athletes to do well in the international arena. The Multi-Million Dollar Awards Programme provides a cash payout to athletes who win gold medals at the Olympic, Asian, Commonwealth and South East Asian Games. However, there may be implications involved.

Although the fines work, youths do not really reap its benefits. For example public “adult grounds” such as coffeehouses and shopping centers are free of vandalism and litter, but visit any school or youth spot in Singapore and the place would be littered and spotted with paint and graffiti. Even school tables are not spared as students draw on them during lessons with markers. Extrinsic motivation thus does not apply to youths. This asks one to think about the effectiveness of the fine system in Singapore. I think that students litter and vandalize freely in their schools as there are no fine systems in school, and the chances of getting caught are rare. Thus, extrinsic fine systems in Singapore are ineffective, as it only induces fear in a person, instead of actually motivating a person to steer away from undesired behavior.

Extrinsic motivation in the athletic arena may be a good thing, as It would definitely encourage low-wage athletes to strive harder. Lee Jia Wei, a table tennis player, has even managed to play to a 4th place finish at the Athens Olympics in 2004, a commendable effort, obviously. Thus, extrinsic motivation in the sporting arena, where no moral values are involved, reap more benefits.