Plenty of evidence both in the laboratory and in real life attests to the power of counterwill to sabotage shallow behavioral goals pursued by means of psychological force or manipulation. One particular experiment involved preschool children who loved playing with Magic Markers. These children were divided into various groups: one group was promised an attractive certificate if they used the markers; one group was not promised anything but was rewarded for using the markers with the same certificate; one group was neither promised nor given a reward. When tested several weeks later but
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