PhD defense: Melina Vejlø

Melina Vejlø
Effort Learning and Embodied Motivated Behaviour

About the PhD thesis:

What makes something worth the effort? Every day, we make decisions about how much effort we are willing to invest to get what we want. But how do we learn what is worth the effort, and why can the same physical effort feel manageable in one situation and unpleasant in another? 

When deciding whether something is worth the effort, we consider both what we might gain and how demanding it will be. But these judgements are not fixed. We learn from experience, adapt to changing circumstances, and are influenced by how we feel along the way. Using brain imaging, experiments involving physical effort, and mathematical models of human behaviour, Melina Vejlø investigated how we learn about rewards and effort, and how these processes differ between individuals. She also examined how signals from the body, such as fatigue, may influence how we experience effort and how willing we are to exert it. 

The research contributes to a broader understanding of motivation, in which effort is not simply something we seek to avoid, but something we learn to evaluate and adjust according to our experiences and current circumstances. It therefore contributes to a better understanding of why people respond differently to the same challenges, and how our experiences and bodily state help shape our motivation. 

ALL ARE WELCOME.

It will also be possible to join the defence via zoom: 
https://aarhusuniversity.zoom.us/j/65943170736

After the defense CFIN is hosting a small reception in the pavilion at 
CFIN South, Building 1710, universitetsbyen 3, 8000 Aarhus C.

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Assessment committee: 

• Associate Professor Dan Bang, Aarhus University
• Professor Nils B. Kroemer, University of Tübingen
• Professor Matthew Apps, University of Birmingham

Contact 

PhD student Melina Vejlø 
Email: melina@cfin.au.dk