Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: We contend that the experience of effort should be understood as the experience arising from resisting an affective behaviour-guiding signal such as hunger, pain, fatigue, or anxiety. We argue that this provides a more satisfactory account than the cost based accounts that have become popular. We distinguish an account of the experience of effort from an account of effort itself, and argue against the reification of efforts.
Source: Synthese
Authors: Eleanor Holton, Richard Holton
Institutions: Princeton University, University of Cambridge
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,190
Funder: Wellcome Trust
OpenAlex ID: W7118557151