What the study found
The study found that when people chose to exert maximal mental effort, they showed a greater preference for getting answers correct. The researchers did not find a consistent group-level change in the habitual bias toward reading words in the task.
Why the authors say this matters
The authors conclude that voluntary investment of cognitive effort may be driven mainly by stronger motivation for accuracy, rather than by directly suppressing habitual response tendencies. They also suggest this computational approach may be relevant in clinical settings where intentional effort allocation is impaired in psychiatric and neurological disorders.
What the researchers tested
Twenty healthy young adults completed the Stroop task, in which they had to name the font color of a color word while ignoring the word itself. They did this under two conditions: with maximum exertion and as relaxed as possible. Their behavior was modeled with a two-layer generative model based on active inference, a computational framework that describes behavior in terms of expected outcomes and internal beliefs.
What worked and what didn't
The model estimated two latent parameters: a habitual bias toward word reading over color naming, and motivation to perform the task correctly. Maximal effort was associated with increased motivation for correct performance. By contrast, the relationship with habitual word-reading bias did not show a consistent group effect.
What to keep in mind
The abstract describes a small study with twenty healthy young adults, so the findings are limited to that group. It also does not report detailed limitations beyond the suggested clinical relevance.
Key points
- Twenty healthy young adults completed the Stroop task under maximal effort and relaxed conditions.
- A computational active inference model estimated habitual word-reading bias and motivation for correct performance.
- Voluntary maximal effort was associated with greater preference for correct performance.
- The study did not find a consistent group effect for habitual word-reading bias.
- The authors suggest the approach may be relevant to disorders involving impaired intentional effort allocation.
Disclosure
- Research title:
- Voluntary effort was linked to greater accuracy motivation
- Authors:
- Riccardo Maramotti, Thomas Parr, Manuela Tondelli, Daniela Ballotta, Sanjay Manohar, Giovanna Zamboni, Giuseppe Pagnoni
- Institutions:
- National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment, National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment, University of Ferrara, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, University of Oxford, University of Oxford
- Publication date:
- 2026-03-16
- OpenAlex record:
- View
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