The Neurobiology of Activational Aspects of Motivation: Exertion of Effort, Effort-Based Decision Making, and the Role of Dopamine

• Published in: Annual review of psychology Vol. 75; no. 1; pp. 1 - 32
• Main Authors: Salamone, John D, Correa, Mercè
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Annual Reviews 18-01-2024; Annual Reviews, Inc
• Subjects: Activation; Animals; Behavior; behavioral activation; Brain; caudate putamen; Cognitive behavioral therapy; Decision making; Dopamine; mesolimbic; Motivation; Neurobiology; Neurochemistry; Neurotransmitters; nucleus accumbens; Schizophrenia; vigor; nucleus accumbens; behavioral activation; mesolimbic; caudate putamen; vigor
• ISSN: 0066-4308; 1545-2085
• DOI: 10.1146/annurev-psych-020223-012208

Motivational processes are complex and multifaceted, with both directional and activational aspects. Behavioral activation and exertion of effort are functions that enable organisms to overcome obstacles separating them from significant outcomes. In a complex environment, organisms make cost benefit decisions, assessing work-related response costs and reinforcer preference. Animal studies have challenged the general idea that dopamine (DA) is best viewed as the reward transmitter and instead have illustrated the involvement of DA in activational and effort-related processes. Mesocorticolimbic DA is a key component of the effort-related motivational circuitry that includes multiple neurotransmitters and brain areas. Human studies have identified brain areas and transmitter systems involved in effort-based decision making and characterized the reduced selection of high-effort activities associated with motivational symptoms of depression and schizophrenia. Animal and human research on the neurochemistry of behavioral activation and effort-related processes makes an important conceptual contribution by illustrating the dissociable nature of distinct aspects of motivation.