Daily briefing: Why we enjoy things more when they’re hard to get

Key Points

• Enjoyment levels are often higher when experiences or items require significant effort to obtain, enhancing perceived value.
• A key metric reveals that psychological factors like cognitive dissonance influence how we value these challenging experiences.
• This analysis explores how the reward system activates more intensely when there's effort justification in pursuing goals.
• This suggests that difficulty may enhance satisfaction, highlighting a complex relationship between effort, motivation, and enjoyment.