Reward Sensitivity's Associations with Morningness-Eveningness and Other Circadian-Coupled Behavioral Phenomena: A...

This meta-analysis provides a quantitative synthesis of associations between reward sensitivity and morningness-eveningness and other circadian-coupled behaviors. The circadian system, which generates patterns of preferences and behaviors such as morningness-eveningness, social jetlag, and rest-activity rhythms, is linked to health outcomes. Reward sensitivity encompasses a trait-level tendency to be motivated by/respond to rewarding stimuli, which is a known risk factor for psychopathology. Theoretical and empirical support suggest these systems work together synergistically, and their interaction uniquely contributes to the onset/course of health conditions, including mood and substance use disorders, beyond the impact of each system independently. This review evaluates the strength of the association between circadian-coupled behavior and reward sensitivity.

A systematic literature search (7/11/2025) was conducted in two databases (MEDLINE/PsycINFO), followed by a two-step screening process. Pooled effects and publication bias estimates were calculated.

Most included studies assessed the association between morningness-eveningness and reward sensitivity, which had a nonsignificant pooled effect. In clinical samples, eveningness displayed a moderate positive association with reward sensitivity (null in community samples). The association between morningness-eveningness and reward sensitivity differed by reward sensitivity measure. Social jetlag had a small negative pooled effect and social rhythm disruption had a moderate positive pooled effect.

Associations between morningness-eveningness and reward sensitivity (k=17) are minimal and heterogeneous, but meaningful effects appear in clinical samples. For social jetlag (k=3) and social rhythm disruption (k=3), the pattern of associations with reward sensitivity is variable. Future directions include prioritization of objective circadian measures, longitudinal designs, and multimodal measurement to clarify mechanisms.