Behavior in motivational conflicts is determined by magnitude of potential outcomes and relates to anxiety levels

Behavior in motivational conflicts is determined by magnitude of potential outcomes and relates to anxiety levels | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Behavior in motivational conflicts is determined by magnitude of potential outcomes and relates to anxiety levels Shir Ben-Zvi Feldman, Omer Dayan, Ya’ira Somerville, Chang-Hao Kao, and 9 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6916454/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted 10 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Human behavior often involves resolving conflicts between motivations to pursue rewards and to avoid harm. Maladaptive resolution of such approach-avoidance conflicts is a hallmark of various psychopathologies, notably anxiety disorders. To systematically study motivated behavior tendencies, we need to identify factors that may drive them, such as sensitivity to the magnitudes of expected outcomes. We developed a novel paradigm that presents conflict situations with parametrically-varying magnitudes of potential monetary gains and losses that map onto a continuous behavioral outcome reflecting willingness to engage in each situation. Using this paradigm, we evaluate the hypothesis that potential outcome magnitudes determine conflict behavior, across a series of studies in different populations and settings - including a proof-of-concept with young adults, replication in a larger sample, online administration, and application to youth with and without anxiety disorders. Our findings demonstrate that outcome magnitudes reliably predicted behavior, yielding robust individual indices of gain-approach and loss-avoidance tendencies. Moreover, anxiety severity was associated with greater passive avoidance in a sample-specific manner. By quantifying individual-level indices that link potential outcome magnitudes to observable behavior, our work offers a reliable framework for investigating adaptive and maladaptive motivated behaviors, with potential utility for both basic and clinical research. Biological sciences/Neuroscience Biological sciences/Psychology approach avoidance motivation anxiety conflict Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files SupplementalMaterialScientificreports20250617.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 07 Aug, 2025 Reviews received at journal 06 Aug, 2025 Reviews received at journal 05 Aug, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 28 Jul, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Jul, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 14 Jul, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 14 Jul, 2025 Editor invited by journal 20 Jun, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 18 Jun, 2025 First submitted to journal 17 Jun, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6916454","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":473907680,"identity":"7e991d4e-42e9-4c3f-8d81-6d835ce2a2be","order_by":0,"name":"Shir Ben-Zvi Feldman","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAAuUlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACAwYGNoYEBhsgk7EBJMDDR6SWNIQWNqK0MDAcRogQ1GLOf/zZg4d7zucb3G5uYPhRwyBDUItlwxlzg4Rnty033DnYwNhzjBiHHexhk0g4cNvA4EZiAwNvAzFaDrM/A2o5B9bC+JcoLccYzIBaDoC1MBNli2UPD0hLsoEkUMthmWMShLWAQkzyxwE7A74b6Q8fvqmxsecnpAUFHGBgkCBJwygYBaNgFIwCHAAAWNs6ANDUCaIAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Reichman University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Shir","middleName":"Ben-Zvi","lastName":"Feldman","suffix":""},{"id":473907681,"identity":"de7b3f61-0c82-438e-939c-236b619d3980","order_by":1,"name":"Omer Dayan","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Reichman University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Omer","middleName":"","lastName":"Dayan","suffix":""},{"id":473907682,"identity":"38815b58-4c03-4b37-98f8-28b6b00d4a36","order_by":2,"name":"Ya’ira Somerville","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Reichman University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Ya’ira","middleName":"","lastName":"Somerville","suffix":""},{"id":473907683,"identity":"7ccebfb9-e2c1-4afc-8273-e6466bf90b4f","order_by":3,"name":"Chang-Hao Kao","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"National Institute of Mental Health","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Chang-Hao","middleName":"","lastName":"Kao","suffix":""},{"id":473907684,"identity":"4dacbc60-f420-451c-95eb-ff788078a5de","order_by":4,"name":"Shelly Cohen","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Reichman University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Shelly","middleName":"","lastName":"Cohen","suffix":""},{"id":473907685,"identity":"d3d3637e-a62d-4057-a0b8-2e937f33f1e8","order_by":5,"name":"Oriana Glickman","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Reichman University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Oriana","middleName":"","lastName":"Glickman","suffix":""},{"id":473907686,"identity":"1c2763fe-a79f-4de5-86b4-d0544fed7451","order_by":6,"name":"Sonia G. 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