Reward strengthens action–effect binding
Eder,AB Erle,Thorsten Michael Kunde,W
Eder,AB
Erle,Thorsten Michael
Kunde,W
Abstract
According to ideomotor theory, anticipatory representations of action consequences are the basis for voluntary action control. A previous study suggested that rewards strengthen the acquisition of action effect links and hence ideomotor learning. Participants in our experiments (total N = 231) first learned to associate 4 manual actions with unique sound effects. Two sound effects were additionally predictive of a monetary reward. In a subsequent test phase, the former sound effects were presented as response primes in a speeded reaction time task. Response times were higher when the primes preceded a response other than the one to which they were linked in the preceding learning phase, an index of response−effect learning. Response priming was stronger for previously rewarded actions. Critically, this effect was not observed in a control condition with previously punished actions that produced a monetary loss. Overall, the results suggest that relations to rewarding consequences enhance associations between actions and sensory effects, a process that may facilitate reinforcement learning.
Description
Date
2020
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Research Projects
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Keywords
Action-effect binding, Ideomotor theory, Reinforcement learning, Reward
Citation
Eder, AB, Erle, T M & Kunde, W 2020, 'Reward strengthens action–effect binding', Motivation Science, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 297-302. https://doi.org/10.1037/mot0000153