What is the main idea of the passage?

An expected reward can replace a person's own reason for doing something they already enjoy, and interest drops when the reward stops. (The study, the explanation, and the limits all describe a reward replacing the internal reason for an already enjoyed activity.)

Which children spent the least free time drawing in the later session?

Those promised a certificate before they drew. (The first paragraph names the promised-certificate group as the one that drew less than either other group.)

Based on the last paragraph, why would paying people for dull work they would never choose freely be less risky?

Because the effect appears mainly with activities people already find interesting. (There is no existing interest for the reward to replace, and the passage limits the effect to already interesting activities.)

In this passage, mere means:

nothing more than; only (The mere doing of the task means simply doing it, as opposed to doing it well.)

Paying For Play: Level 4 Reading Comprehension Questions

A reward looks like a pure addition. The child already enjoys drawing, so a prize for drawing should add to the enjoyment and produce even more drawing. In a much-cited study, the result went the other way. Children who were promised a certificate for drawing spent less free time drawing in a later session than children who drew for nothing, or who received the same certificate as a surprise afterward.

The standard account is called overjustification. Part of motivation is a story we tell ourselves about why we are doing something. Before the prize, the story is simple: I draw because I like it. After a promised prize, a second and louder explanation is available: I draw because someone rewards me. When the payment stops, the reason it replaced does not automatically return.

The effect has limits worth keeping in mind. It shows up mainly for activities people already find interesting, and mainly when the reward is expected and tied to the mere doing of the task. Rewards for genuine skill, or for work nobody would choose freely, behave quite differently.

Comprehension questions