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Foundational assumption reasonable but uncertain

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 September 2021

Rex A. Wright Open the ORCID record for Rex A. Wright [Opens in a new window]  and
Christopher Mlynski
Rex A. Wright
Affiliation:
University of Texas Dell School of Medicine, Austin, TX 78712, USA University of North Texas, Denton, TX, 76203, USA
Christopher Mlynski
Affiliation:
Technical University Dresden, 01069 Dresden, Germany University of Vienna, 1010 Vienna, Austria
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Abstract

We offer thoughts on Shadmehr and Ahmed's foundational assumption that behavioral intensity (vigor) is proportional to the perceived value of outcomes driving behavior (incentives). The assumption is reasonable considering classical motivational thought and scholarship in related literatures but called into question by an influential contemporary theory of motivation by Brehm. Brehm's theory suggests that the assumption is warranted in some, but not all, performance circumstances. Furthermore, proportionality between vigor and value might be generated through a deliberative goal-setting process rather than through intrinsic neural linkages.

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Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 44 , 2021 , e137
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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References

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