Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior

Foundational text for Self-Determination Theory — distinguishes intrinsic from extrinsic motivation and identifies autonomy, competence, and relatedness as basic psychological needs that drive sustainable engagement.

SDT establishes that what sustains engagement comes from within, not from external reward structures. This supports MN's claim that engagement energy has an internal source — and that source matters more than skill or incentive for sustained performance.

MN natures describe what intrinsically energizes a person. SDT explains the mechanism. MN adds specificity that SDT lacks: intrinsic energy is not generic but has nine distinct modes. A person intrinsically motivated by Healing engagement is not interchangeable with one motivated by Entrepreneurial engagement.

SDT treats intrinsic motivation as relatively uniform in source. MN claims nine distinct channels — an extension that SDT research has not empirically validated.