Punished by Rewards

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

De: Alfie Kohn

Narrado por: Alfie Kohn

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

Reseñas de la Crítica

"A clear, convincing demonstration of the shortcomings of pop-behaviorism, written with style, humor, and authority." ( Kirkus)

Skeptical at first, I've been won over

I began this book skeptical of Kohn's thesis. I was going to listen with an open mind, but in a world full of people spending 40 hours or more a week chasing a paycheck, I anticipated to be presented with a half-baked theory that stretched thin evidence past limits of sober credulity sprinkled with powerful -- if not quite believable -- anecdotes. Instead, Kohn makes a compelling case, and if anything, the numerous research citations become tiring. If the reader perseveres, Kohn goes on to describe alternative approaches to parenting, teaching, and leadership. This isn't a page-turning beach read, but Kohn has successfully convinced me that some deeply held beliefs are misguided and pointed the path to a better way. And I'm already seeing some small successes in applying these lessons to my everyday life. I'm very glad I purchased this book.

Validating.

I have felt very awkward about awards my entire life and never have responded comfortably to praise. I always cringe. Turns out I am not neurotypical and I have two autistic children that sent me down the path of investigating behavioral therapy methods. I am truly grateful for the validation this book has provided for me and wholeheartedly agree with it.

It’s a must

If you are a parent, teacher or manager, this audiobook should be your top priority.

A necessity for any teacher, that is, anyone

I'll save you from a description, since the book basically is a blast right from the start. However, two minor criticisms I have: - Some chapters are a bit repetitive or very similar to previous ones - I wish he had invested a bit more time and effort into citing more references, specially in citing other books from which to continue our journey in this topic

A listen for every parent and teacher

I wish I would have read this book when it first came out. I spent years trying to convince others that rewards and punishments don’t work.

Sage knowledge!

A must read for all parents, educators, and managers. I am glad I got to this book before my child is out of the house!

Must Read

Many books I read kept referencing this book. I see why. This pulls back the curtain on much of my upbringing and even religion (a topic Kohn did not address). This book explains why I would tell other moms my concerns about raising my kids and they would give unsolicited advice about extrinsic behavior modification as if I didn't know what it was. This book could easily save lives. I will read and re-read it.

Numbers of chapters don't match what is read

Numbers of chapters don't match what is read, which is confusing.
15 word filler here

Game changer

Why didn’t I have this 21 years ago when my oldest was born? But better late than never, especially for his 14 year old brother and 17 year old sister. Absolutely inspired.

Seminal

The topic is very important, and I feel that "Punished by Rewards" is a well-known work.

I'm not thrilled about how the author's tone is more preachy than scientific. He often tends to come off as mocking people who disagree with him. I'd rather he focus more on providing proof for his claims, and on providing specific alternative strategies, and showing more evidence for the success of those alternative strategies.

I was surprised not to hear references to the famous studies about how children praised for their talents would then focus on taking easier tasks, so they wouldn't have to risk that image of themselves as intelligent or talented. I had thought the point of those studies was to praise children for trying hard. But again, that wasn't mentioned in this book - the author seems to maintain that all rewards, including all praise, is bad. I can definitely understand his frustration with parents praising their children for swinging on a swingset (his "it's gravity!" comment was amusing), But should parents really never offer any sort of praise whatsoever?

Similarly, I'm not fully sold on the idea that there should be nothing that looks remotely like a performance review. Don't get me wrong; performance reviews are stressful, and are almost always done completely wrong. But the author skims over how workforce management would work without them. Should all employees be paid the same? Or perhaps be given raises based purely on seniority, not on skill? It doesn't seem like a good idea to give the same salaries to two people with similar roles but vastly different levels of competence and contribution.

In general, I should likely find reviews and articles about this book to get a broader context. And it would be nice to find something in a similar vein that is more up to date, and perhaps that goes more in depth in some aspects. But it is a valuable book to convince us to think twice about systems of rewards or punishments, and to ask us to think how we can instead try to give instrinsic motivation a chance to flourish.

It's far from perfect, but definitely a book people should read.