FeaturedNeurosciencePsychology·November 21, 2024·4 min readLow Confidence Drives Feedback-Seeking, Boosts Learning OutcomesA new study reveals that individuals with low confidence in their performance are more likely to seek corrective feedback, which significantly enhances their learning. By analyzing participants' decisions during a memory task tied to monetary rewards, researchers found that the desire for feedback was driven by uncertainty, not emotional factors like stress.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·October 23, 2024·6 min readNeural Pathways Link Dopamine to Movement and MotivationResearchers have discovered two new brain pathways that modify movement and emotional decisions by controlling dopamine release. These pathways, found in the striatum, either stimulate or inhibit dopamine-producing neurons, influencing the go and no-go pathways that control movement.Read More
FeaturedGeneticsNeuroscience·October 11, 2024·5 min readKey Brain Protein Tied to Motivation and Mood IdentifiedA new study has identified a brain protein, vesicular nucleotide transporter (Vnut), as essential for regulating mood and motivation in mice. When Vnut was removed from brain cells called astrocytes, the mice displayed higher anxiety, depression-like behavior, and decreased motivation, especially in females.Read More
FeaturedNeurosciencePsychology·July 30, 2024·4 min readExercise Boosts Motivation to Combat DepressionA new study suggests that exercise reduces depression by boosting motivation through decreased inflammation and enhanced dopamine function. This understanding could lead to personalized exercise programs as treatment. The review highlights how aerobic exercise combats anhedonia and low energy in depression. Large trials are needed to further test this hypothesis and explore barriers to exercise.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·May 31, 2024·5 min readActivating Brain’s Serotonin Center Alters Behavior and MotivationStimulating the brain's serotonin center, the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN), activates areas responsible for behavior and motivation. This discovery, using opto-functional MRI in awake mice, highlights serotonin's significant role in cognitive functions. The study offers insights into how serotonin influences behavior and mood regulation.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·May 24, 2024·5 min readSerotonin Affects Behavior and MotivationA new study reveals how activating the brain's serotonin center affects behavior and motivation in awake mice. Using optogenetics and high-field MRI, researchers found that stimulating serotonin neurons in the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) activates the cerebral cortex and basal ganglia, critical areas for cognitive functions.Read More
FeaturedNeurosciencePsychology·April 26, 2024·5 min readCannabis Users Stay Motivated: Lazy Stoner Myth DebunkedA new study challenges the stereotype that chronic cannabis users are lazy and unmotivated. The research surveyed 260 frequent users and found no significant drop in their motivation or effort levels while high compared to when sober.Read More
FeaturedNeurosciencePsychology·April 3, 2024·5 min readBridging Motivation Gaps: LLMs and Health Behavior ChangeA new study explores how large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Google Bard, and Llama 2 address different motivational states in health-related contexts, revealing a significant gap in their ability to support behavior change.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·March 18, 2024·7 min readBrain’s Motivation Mechanics: How Hunger Drives Goal PursuitResearchers unveiled how the brain's thalamus navigates hunger-driven motivation. Through innovative experiments with mice, the study explores the role of two distinct neuronal populations within the paraventricular nucleus (PVT), showing how they regulate actions towards achieving a goal, like foraging for food.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·June 6, 2023·7 min readDopamine Plays Double Duty in Learning and MotivationA novel study suggests that dopamine, a neurotransmitter, plays dual roles in learning and motivation. In the study, male rats underwent Pavlovian or operant conditioning while their dopamine release was measured.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscienceOpen Neuroscience Articles·November 15, 2022·3 min readHow the Nucleus Accumbens Mediates Positive and Negative Motivational ValenceStudy reveals the mechanism of the nucleus accumbens for mediating reward and aversion.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscienceOpen Neuroscience Articles·November 7, 2022·5 min readMotivation Is Affected by Oxidative Stress, but Nutrition Can HelpHigher levels of glutathione in the nucleus accumbens correlated with better and more steady performance in motivation-based tasks. Findings suggest improvements in accumbal anti-oxidant function that can be acquired via diet or supplementation may be a feasible approach to help boost motivation.Read More
