A study published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience provides evidence that the brain’s reward system ...

For a small percentage of people, loss doesn’t soften with time. New research reveals how prolonged grief disorder disrupts the brain’s reward systems—and how treatment can help. A woman attends a ...

We have long been told a simple story about reward: Dopamine is the "wanting" molecule that drives us toward goals, and opioids are the "liking" molecules that provide the hit of pleasure once we get ...

Research in mice identifies brain circuitry that supports certain reward-based decisions. Every day, our brain makes thousands of decisions, big and small. Any of these decisions -- from the least ...

In our day-to-day lives, we're constantly making a slew of decisions, from immediate matters to prospects on the far horizon. But the evolutionary nuts-and-bolts of how our brains weigh these numerous ...

Editor’s note: The podcast Chasing Life With Dr. Sanjay Gupta explores the medical science behind some of life’s mysteries big and small. You can listen to episodes here. (CNN) — If you are like many ...

I was a third-year medical student at Northwestern on my ICU rotation the first time I saw a dopamine drip. The patient was pale and motionless, his blood pressure dropping by the minute despite large ...

A new study is challenging one of neuroscience’s most enduring ideas: that the brain’s reward system exists to make us feel good. Instead, researchers argue that it is built to optimize energy.