Understanding Dopamine's Role

These pathways, which rely on the neurotransmitter dopamine, are often referred to as the reward system, but they are also involved in motivation, attention, decision making, and other complex functions. In their studies, Wang and Volkow found that both drug addicts a...

• For humans, rats, and all animals , the desire and motivation to pursue sex arise largely from a neurochemical called dopamine.
• Dopamine amps up the centerpiece of the primitive part of the brain—the reward system. It’s where we experience cravings and pleasu...

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that creates positive feelings associated with reward or reinforcement that motivate us to continue with a task or activity. There is evidence that reduced dopamine levels can contribute to depression in some people.

Dopamine is believed to play an important ...