Motivation and memory: An analysis of performance-dependent reward-based motivational effects on encoding and retrieval

Extrinsic reward has been shown to influence memory performance. This study sought to examine the effects of extrinsic reward on the individual processes of encoding/retrieval. Thirty-eight participants were divided into three groups; each underwent a memory task consisting of an encoding phase, filler task, and retrieval phase. The control group did not have an opportunity to receive a reward, unlike the two experimental groups who both had potential to receive a lottery ticket conditional on strong memory performance, although they differed in the times in which they were made aware of the potential reward. An improvement in memory performance primarily attributable to motivated retrieval was expected. There was no significant difference in memory performance or motivation between groups