Despite the observable evidence that humans are liberally endowed with
intrinsic motivational tendencies, this propensity appears to be expressed
only under specific conditions. Research into intrinsic motivation has thus
placed much emphasis on those conditions that elicit, sustain, and enhance
this special type of motivation versus those that subdue or diminish it.
SelfDetermination Theory is specifically framed in terms of social and environmental
factors that facilitate versus undermine intrinsic motivation. This language
reflects the assumption that intrinsic motivation, being an inherent
organismic propensity, is catalyzed (rather than caused) when individuals
are in conditions that conduce toward its expression