The Complexity of Disentangling Intrinsic and Extrinsic Compliance Motivations: Theoretical and Empirical Insights from the Behavioral Analysis of Law

42 Pages Posted: 8 Sep 2010 Last revised: 26 Dec 2015

See all articles by Yuval Feldman

Yuval Feldman

Bar-Ilan University - Faculty of Law

Date Written: March 9, 2011

Abstract

One of the central distinctions in the literature with regard to the behavioral function of the law is between “intrinsic” and “extrinsic” motivations. Extrinsic motivation is linked to actions that are driven by external commands or incentives. Conversely, intrinsic motivation is found when the behavior is chosen from within the individual, usually out of a sense of moral or civic duty. This paper will attempt to improve our understanding of the interrelationship between love and money in a legal context, through a discussion of a series of theoretical dilemmas related to the interplay between intrinsic and extrinsic compliance motivations. For the most part, researchers who have worked within the behavioral analysis of legal scholarship have not focused on love, but rather on other intrinsic motivations, such as trust, morality, and pro-social motivations. Love, however, as one of the most basic intrinsic motivations, can benefit from the insights explored in the more general context of such other intrinsic motivations. Similarly, expanding the discussion from money to monetary instruments such as fines, deposits, and rewards, as well as other non-monetary legal instruments such as imposing a duty, could improve both the theoretical basis of the discussion and the empirical data available.

The paper will be divided into two main parts. The first part will focus on three bodies of literature which provide the basic theoretical view of how intrinsic and extrinsic compliance motivations interact. The second part of the paper will focus on the normative implications of this theoretical point of view, leading to some tentative policy suggestions as to how to countervail some of the disruptive effects of monetary considerations, while still maintaining people’s intrinsic commitment toward socially desirable behavior.

Keywords: compliance, social norms, expressive law, love vs. money, crowding out, trust, Law and Psychology

Suggested Citation

Feldman, Yuval, The Complexity of Disentangling Intrinsic and Extrinsic Compliance Motivations: Theoretical and Empirical Insights from the Behavioral Analysis of Law (March 9, 2011). 35 WASH U J. L & POLICY 11 (2011) (Symposium -- For Love or Money) , Bar Ilan Univ. Pub Law Working Paper No. 14-10, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1673131

Yuval Feldman (Contact Author)

Bar-Ilan University - Faculty of Law ( email )

Faculty of Law
Ramat Gan, 52900
Israel

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