Cerebellar Stimulation Shows Potential to Improve Reward Processing in Healthy Adults

Recent research published in The Cerebellum highlights the promising effects of cerebellar neuromodulation on reward processing in healthy individuals. The study investigated whether a single session of High-Definition Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (HD-tDCS) applied to the cerebellum could influence aspects of motivation and pleasure, which are key components of reward processing.

Involving 63 healthy adult participants, the randomized, single-blind, controlled experiment targeted the right posterior cerebellum with 1.7 mA stimulation for 20 minutes. Researchers assessed reward-related behaviors before and after stimulation using three well-established tasks: the Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task, the Effort-Expenditure for Rewards Task (EEfRT), and the Probabilistic Selection Task (PST).

Findings revealed that those who received active cerebellar stimulation maintained their levels of anticipatory and consummatory pleasure, as opposed to the sham group, which showed declines. Additionally, the active group demonstrated increased reward sensitivity post-stimulation, indicating that cerebellar neuromodulation can enhance reward responsiveness in healthy individuals.

These findings expand the understanding of the cerebellum's multifaceted role beyond motor control, emphasizing its involvement in reward circuits and motivation. They also suggest that cerebellar HD-tDCS could be a potential target for future psychiatric interventions aimed at disorders characterized by diminished motivation and pleasure, such as depression and schizophrenia.

Overall, this study opens new avenues for exploring cerebellar stimulation as a tool to modulate reward-related processes, with possible implications for mental health treatment and performance enhancement.

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-cerebellar-brain-boost-reward-healthy.html