Fatigue Symptoms Influence Effort-Based Decision-Making in Major Depressive Disorder.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Fatigue is a central symptom of major depressive disorder (MDD). Research in healthy individuals has shown that heightened feelings of fatigue are associated with a reduced willingness to exert effort. However, it remains unclear how fatigue affects effort-based decision-making in individuals with MDD. In this study, we explore how cognitive effort is traded for rewards in MDD and how feelings of fatigue and depressed mood symptoms influence this decision-making process.

Methods

Healthy participants (n = 26) and individuals with MDD (n = 18) took part in a forced-choice paradigm, where they decided to perform either a low-effort cognitive effort task for a small reward or a more cognitively effortful task for a larger reward. Participants also completed the Beck D

SUBMITTER: Steward GE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12636678 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature