Katharina Buczek
On the flip side, the mice performed best while experiencing only a moderate level of thirst. They successfully licked the spout after only whisker A was stimulated.
And finally, when the mice were not very thirsty at all, their task performance was subpar again.
The team also observed neural activity during each task and found that when the mice were in a state of hyper-motivation, their circuits were bombarded with electrical signals– which basically overwhelmed the rodents.
“Hyper-motivation leads to strong stimulation of cortical neurons, which causes a loss of precision in the perception of tactile stimuli,” underscored Giulio Matteucci, the study’s first author.
Motivation levels that were too low also revealed interesting neural findings. While the rodents were not thirsty, their sensory information was more accurate. However, since they were not motivated enough, these signals were not strong enough to be correctly transferred– which, again, resulted in impaired stimuli perception.
So now, the researchers believe that a new understanding of motivation’s impact on decision-making and performance is necessary. Moreover, these findings should pave the way for the creation of methods that cater to optimal motivation levels in learning.
To read the study’s complete findings, which have since been published in Neuron, visit the link here.
If true crime defines your free time, this is for you: join Chip Chick’s True Crime Tribe
Loaded Baked Potato Soup Is A Great Recipe To Try When The Temperature Starts To Really Drop
