ABSTRACT
Motivated systems are orchestrated by cognitive and neural devices, some of which are flexible in design structure. Forebrain regions modulate the expression of behavioral outputs and adjudicate conflicting appetites and desires. Central behavioral programs figure in the expression of motivated behaviors. This chapter conveys a basic feature of animal life, namely, perseverance and survival. Motivational systems and their evolution figures in human understanding of the origins of effort and the will and with the regulation of the internal milieu and stability. People know that diverse cognitive systems underlie sensory motor control in motivational systems and that dopamine is vital in the organization of motivation, action, and problem solving. Central motivation states are, in part, tied to the psychology of effort, to sensory motor integration. The evolution of our cognitive arsenal was accompanied by a greater capacity for choice and for integrating diverse needs or drives.
