The session explored how long-term use of substances affects thinking, behaviour, and everyday decision-making and why ...

GLP-1 weight-loss drugs alter brain circuits in the amygdala and dopamine system to reduce the motivation to seek out high-calorie foods.

We have long been told a simple story about reward: Dopamine is the "wanting" molecule that drives us toward goals, and opioids are the "liking" molecules that provide the hit of pleasure once we get ...

Ten years ago, popular psychology explained motivation quite simply: a person tries because he wants to have fun or avoid punishment. But modern neuroscience shows a more complex picture: our brain ...

Positive thinking may boost the body’s defenses against disease. Increasing activity in a brain region that controls motivation and expectation, specifically the brain’s reward system, is linked with ...

When faced with multiple food options and ultimately choosing one, the factors of that decision-making process may be more physiological than previously assumed. A group of scientists led by ...

People are more likely to believe lies when there’s the possibility of a reward. Neuroimaging shows that the brain shifts into reward or risk mode depending on whether the context involves a gain or a ...

A new study is challenging one of neuroscience’s most enduring ideas: that the brain’s reward system exists to make us feel good. Instead, researchers argue that it is built to optimize energy.