Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

The Influence of Cognition on Affect

The Influence of Cognition on Affect

Cognition plays a pivotal role in shaping emotional experiences, as demonstrated by Schachter and Singer’s two-factor theory of emotion. According to this model, emotion arises from a combination of physiological arousal and cognitive interpretation. The body’s physiological response to stimuli is ambiguous and only gains emotional significance through cognitive labeling. For instance, an increased heart rate and adrenaline surge while standing near an attractive person may be...

Self-Regulation

Self-Regulation

Self-regulation, also known as self-control, encompasses a range of cognitive and behavioral processes that allow individuals to adjust their internal states and outward actions to align with socially acceptable norms and long-term goals. It plays a fundamental role in adaptive functioning, from resisting impulsive behaviors to persisting through challenging tasks. While its benefits are widely recognized, self-regulation is not limitless. Muraven and Baumeister's theory posits that...

Factors Affecting Illness

Factors Affecting Illness

When a person's physical, emotional, intellectual, social development or spiritual functioning is compromised, this deviation from a healthy normal state is called illness. Illness creates stress that in turn harms individuals. Irritation, anger, denial, hopelessness, and fear are behavioral and emotional changes an individual experiences in the phases of illness. A variety of factors influence a person's health and well-being.
For instance, risk factors are connected to illness,...

Magical Thinking

Magical Thinking

Magical thinking encompasses the belief in assumptions that defy logical reasoning yet appear intuitively convincing. It is a common psychological phenomenon that persists across various cultural and individual contexts. While these assumptions contradict empirical evidence and scientific laws, they often serve meaningful psychological roles in promoting emotional resilience and a sense of control, especially under stress or uncertainty.Thought-Action Fusion and the Law of SimilarityA key...

Self-Discrepancy Theory

Self-Discrepancy Theory

One influential perspective on what motivates people's behavior is detailed in Tory Higgin's self-discrepancy theory (Higgins, 1987). He proposed that people hold disagreeing internal representations of themselves that lead to different emotional states.

Nonconscious Mimicry

Nonconscious Mimicry

Nonconscious mimicry occurs when individuals alter their mannerisms to match the behaviors and expressions of those nearby, without intention.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Citizen science in psychology: Challenges, opportunities, and recommendations.

Behavior research methods·2026

Same author

Metacognitive efficiency in learned value-based choice.

PLoS computational biology·2026

Same author

The diagnostic accuracy and clinical feasibility of an immersive VR assessment for spatial attention after left- and right-hemispheric stroke.

Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior·2026

Same author

Miyake Revisited: Validating the Factor Structure of an Open-Source Cognitive Control Test Battery.

Journal of cognition·2026

Same author

Modeling speed-accuracy trade-offs in the stopping rule for confidence judgments.

Psychological review·2025

Same author

A comprehensive study of cognitive control in healthy aging.

Communications medicine·2025

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 5, 2026

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

Published on: February 22, 2018

Is mental effort exertion contagious?

Kobe Desender¹, Sarah Beurms², Eva Van den Bussche³

¹Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium. Kobe.Desender@vub.ac.be.

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review

|August 13, 2015

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Mental effort is contagious: people exert more effort when a collaborator faces a difficult task, even if the task is irrelevant to them. This finding suggests effort contagion is independent of visual cues.

Keywords:

Cognitive control Contagion Effort exertion Joint Simon Social facilitation

More Related Videos

Studying Food Reward and Motivation in Humans

Studying Food Reward and Motivation in Humans

Published on: March 19, 2014

Chronic Stress Shifts Effort-Related Choice Behavior in a Y-Maze Barrier Task in Mice

Chronic Stress Shifts Effort-Related Choice Behavior in a Y-Maze Barrier Task in Mice

Published on: August 13, 2020

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Apr 5, 2026

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

A New Method for Inducing a Depression-Like Behavior in Rats

Published on: February 22, 2018

Studying Food Reward and Motivation in Humans

Studying Food Reward and Motivation in Humans

Published on: March 19, 2014

Chronic Stress Shifts Effort-Related Choice Behavior in a Y-Maze Barrier Task in Mice

Chronic Stress Shifts Effort-Related Choice Behavior in a Y-Maze Barrier Task in Mice

Published on: August 13, 2020

Area of Science:

Cognitive Psychology
Social Neuroscience
Human Performance

Background:

The presence of others influences individual task performance.
It remains unclear if task performance is affected by a collaborator's actions or task difficulty.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether an individual's mental effort exertion is influenced by a collaborator's task difficulty.
To determine if effort exertion is contagious, even without direct observation.

Main Methods:

Two participants performed a joint Simon task.
Task difficulty for Participant A was manipulated (easy vs. difficult).
Participant B's mental effort was measured, with and without visual contact.

Main Results:

Participant B exerted significantly more mental effort when Participant A performed the difficult task.
This effect persisted even when participants could not see each other's stimuli.
Demonstrates that effort exertion can be contagious.

Conclusions:

Mental effort is contagious and can be influenced by a collaborator's task demands.
Effort contagion occurs independently of direct visual observation.
This has implications for understanding social influence on cognitive effort.