Physical effort modulates neural responses to subsequent reinforcement outcomes, potentially explaining how effort enhances the motivational effect of reward.
Effort modulates neural reinforcement responses without acting as punishment; leaves open translation to motivational disorders or interventions.
Choices probabilistically determined the physical effort requirements for a subsequent task, and reward depended on task performance. Feedback revealing whether choices resulted in easy or hard effort did not elicit reinforcement learning signals. However, the neural responses to reinforcement were modulated by preceding effort. Thus, effort itself was not treated as loss or punishment, but it affected the responses to subsequent reinforcement outcomes. This may explain how effort can enhance the motivational effect of reward.
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Palidis et al. (2020) studied this question.
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