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Understanding health behavior change by motivation and reward mechanisms: a review of the literature
Open accessAbstract
The global rise of lifestyle-related chronic diseases has engendered growing interest among various stakeholders including policymakers, scientists, healthcare professionals, and patients, regarding the effective management of health behavior change and the development of interventions that facilitate lifestyle modification. Consequently, a plethora of health behavior change theories has been developed with the intention of elucidating the mechanisms underlying health behavior change and identifying key domains that enhance the likelihood of successful outcomes. Until now, only few studies have taken into account neurobiological correlates underlying health behavior change processes. Recent progress in the neuroscience of motivation and reward systems has provided further insights into the relevance of such domains. The aim of this contribution is to review the latest explanations of health behavior change initiation and maintenance based on novel insights into motivation and reward mechanisms. Based on a systematic literature search in PubMed, PsycInfo, and Google Scholar, four articles were reviewed. As a result, a description of motivation and reward systems (approach/wanting = pleasure; aversion/avoiding = relief; assertion/non-wanting = quiescence) and their role in health behavior change processes is presented. Three central findings are discussed: (1) motivation and reward processes allow to distinguish between goal-oriented and stimulus-driven behavior, (2) approach motivation is the key driver of the individual process of behavior change until a new behavior is maintained and assertion motivation takes over, (3) behavior change techniques can be clustered based on motivation and reward processes according to their functional mechanisms into facilitating (= providing external resources), boosting (= strengthening internal reflective resources) and nudging (= activating internal affective resources). The strengths and limitations of these advances for intervention planning are highlighted and an agenda for testing the models as well as future research is proposed.
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“Research suggests that many adults experience optimal sleep at bedroom temperatures between 15-20 °C, a range that facilitates the body's natural cooling signals and promotes faster sleep onset [62].”
From Pre-Sleep Anxiety: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Approaches in Clinical Practice. (2026) · cites this paper as [62]
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Broche‐Pérez, Y., Fernández-Fleites, Z., Díaz‐Guerra, D. D., Hernández-Lugo, M. D. L. C., & Ramos-Galarza, C. (2026) · Brain and Behavior · doi:10.1002/brb3.71358
“These findings are in line with previous research highlighting the critical role of accessible and clear information in motivating health behavior changes (Matthews et al. 2024 ; Michaelsen and Esch 2023 ).”
Naqvi, I. A., Fisher, K., Strobino, K., Arcia, A., Bassile, C. C., Patel, S. R., Cheung, K., Stein, J., Williams, O. A., Elkind, M. S. V., et al. (2026) · medRxiv · doi:10.64898/2026.04.28.26352004
(2026) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781394461691.refs
Between acceptance and change – a qualitative study about how leaders deal with bureaucracy
Uhl, J., Michaelsen, M. M., Hertzberg, J., Kriegesmann, M., Wallkamm, M., & Esch, T. (2026) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1739144
“…others acceptance without judgment (Kabat-Zinn, 1998) has been confirmed in numerous studies (e.g., Jayewardene et al., 2017; Khoury et al., 2015; Michaelsen et al., 2023), the extent to which acceptance can lead to positive health outcomes, even in cases of negative evaluation, requires further…”
Self-citationÖZER, E., & YILMAZ, N. (2026) · Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi Vizyoner Dergisi · doi:10.21076/vizyoner.1673397
Sun, H., Ko, P., Barker, F., Gašević, D., Stone, J., & Freak‐Poli, R. (2026) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0349934
“In occupational health, there is an increasing dependence on individuals’ capacity for self-regulation to achieve and sustain physical activity gains [1–3].”
Behavioral eco-wellness: Definition, conceptual framework, and research agenda
Barrett, B., Cornwall, K. J., Grabow, M., & Goldberg, S. B. (2026) · Journal of Environmental Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jenvp.2026.103095
Hareru, H. E., Abebe, M., Debela, B. G., Mamo, T. T., & Wondimagegne, Y. A. (2026) · BioMed Research International · doi:10.1155/bmri/3904968
Lucas‐Thompson, R. G., Moran, M. J., Krause, J. T., Rzonca, A. J., Rigsby, B. A., Grossklaus, O., Najman, J. I., & Prince, M. A. (2026) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.1177/00332941261464056
Lu, Y., Wu, Y. X., Ji, M., Deng, Y., Zhang, L. J., Chen, Y., & Guo, Y. (2026) · BMC Psychology · doi:10.1186/s40359-026-05114-z
“As a central determinant in behavior change theories, motivation is widely recognized as a key driver of goal-directed behaviors [1, 2].”
Brindal, E., Brooker, P. G., & Hendrie, G. A. (2026) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-026-28368-z
“Motivational theories are evolving to include broader constructs [24] and better real-world application [33].”
Feng, A., Fan, L., Li, Y., & Zhao, Z. (2026) · International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction · doi:10.1080/10447318.2026.2695443
Chung, Y.-I., Ash, G. I., Jeon, S., Ramachandran, R., Stults-Kolehmainen, M. A., Spanakis, E., & Fucito, L. (2026) · Human Factors in Healthcare · doi:10.1016/j.hfh.2026.100154
“Moreover, sustainable health-promoting behavior change requires not only initial motivation but also ongoing reinforcement (Kwasnicka et al., 2016; Michaelsen & Esch, 2023).”
Consumer Preferences for Packaging in Food Service: Evidence from a Behavioral Intervention
Svidroňová, M. M., & Muthová, N. J. (2026) · Food and Humanity · doi:10.1016/j.foohum.2026.101428
Lam, T. Y. T., To, Z., Wang, Z. J., Mo, P. K. H., Lau, W. M., Yi, Y., Tang, S. Y. R., Hu, Y., Wu, X., Dong, D., et al. (2026) · Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology · doi:10.1016/j.cgh.2026.08.006
An action-oriented framework for well-being
Pinto, J., & Alves, J. L. C. D. C. (2026) · Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health · doi:10.1080/15555240.2026.2712360
“Observation should explicitly distinguish wanting signals (anticipatory excitement, restlessness) from liking signals (pleasure, contentment) and meaning signals (purpose, value alignment) (Michaelsen & Esch, 2023).”
InfluentialZhang, Z., Kong, L., & Qi, C. (2026) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs16081450
“…behavioral change process involves three motivational states (approach motivation, avoidance motivation, and certainty motivation), where avoidance motivation refers to physiological and behavioral changes generated by individuals to escape punishment or potential harm (Michaelsen & Esch, 2023).”
Knowledge–practice concordance and discrepancies in very old adults
Schönenberg, A., Ruttloff, J. M., Heimrich, K. G., & Prell, T. (2026) · Frontiers in Medicine · doi:10.3389/fmed.2026.1891660
Lyeo, J. S., & Williams, A. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1913334
“The notion that population health outcomes can be bolstered in this manner has already been recognized by a burgeoning body of health promotion literature (12).”
Levet-Bourtayre, J., Brinkman, C., Pacheco, G., Levy, E., Baez, S., & Blue, M. N. M. (2026) · Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science · doi:10.1007/s41347-026-00703-6
Lei, Y., Wagner, M. L., Jin, Y., & Reinson, M. (2026) · Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning · doi:10.1016/j.cptl.2026.102776
Metadata
- Authors
- Michaelsen, M. M., & Esch, T.
- Affiliations
- Witten/Herdecke University (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Michaelsen, Maren M.
- Venue
- Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media SA
- Published
- 2023-06-19
- Volume
- 17
- Pages
- 1151918-1151918
- ISSN
- 1662-5153 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC10317209
- OpenAlex
- W4381166137
- Cited by
- 114
- References
- 142
- Citations by year
- 2026: 49 · 2025: 41 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 4
- FWCI
- 3.84
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Behavioral and Psychological Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Keywords
- health behavior change, motivation, reward systems, approach motivation, quiescence, behavior maintenance, behaviour change techniques, lifestyle modification, chronic disease prevention, nudging, intervention planning
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