Computational mechanisms underlying effort and reward valuation in the human brain

Motivated behaviour is driven by the investment of effort in pursuit of reward. We often find effort aversive: when deciding between possible courses of action, we typically choose the least effortful option to achieve an outcome. However, growing evidence from behavioural and neurophysiological studies suggests this picture is incomplete, and points to a more complex interaction between effort and reward in the brain. The overarching goal of this thesis is to better understand interactions between effort and reward in the brain and behaviour.