Motivation and efficiency are inversely correlated
The claim that motivation and efficiency are inversely correlated is refuted by psychological and neuroscientific research, which instead demonstrates an inverted-U-shaped relationship (the Yerkes-Dodson law) where performance peaks at moderate levels of arousal and motivation.
The claim asserts a simple inverse correlation (monotonic decrease) between motivation (or arousal) and efficiency (performance). However, the literature robustly supports the Yerkes-Dodson law and related findings, which dictate an inverted-U-shaped relationship: performance increases with moderate increases in arousal or motivation and only decreases at excessive levels. None of the retrieved papers support a linear inverse correlation, and several explicitly discuss or confirm the inverted-U curve. Therefore, the claim is refuted.
Yaniv Hanoch, Oliver Vitouch. When less is more. 2004. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354304044918
Discusses how the classical Yerkes-Dodson framework links arousal and performance via an inverted-U shape rather than a simple inverse correlation.
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P. Watters, F. Martin, Z. Schreter. Caffeine and Cognitive Performance: The Nonlinear Yerkes–Dodson Law. 1997. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1077(199705/06)12:3<249::AID-HUP865>3.0.CO;2-J
Supports the inverted-U relationship between physiological arousal and cognitive performance.
S. Khazaei, Md. Rafiul Amin, R. T. Faghih. Decoding a Neurofeedback-Modulated Cognitive Arousal State to Investigate Performance Regulation by the Yerkes-Dodson Law. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1109/EMBC46164.2021.9629764
Demonstrates an inverted-U relationship between cognitive arousal states and performance.
L. Beerendonk, Jorge F. Mejías, S. Nuiten, J. W. de Gee, J. Zantvoord, Johannes Jacobus Fahrenfort, S. van Gaal. Adaptive arousal regulation: Pharmacologically shifting the peak of the Yerkes–Dodson curve by catecholaminergic enhancement of arousal. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2419733122
Confirms that performance typically peaks at moderate arousal levels rather than continuously decreasing as arousal increases.
Lopez Blanco C, Tyler WJ. The vagus nerve: a cornerstone for mental health and performance optimization in recreation and elite sports.. 2025. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1639866
Notes that performance models are rooted in the Yerkes-Dodson law where moderate states optimize performance.
Wei Yi, Xin Li, Wangxiao Chen, Linlin Yan, Fei Xin, Tony W. Buchanan, Jianhui Wu. An inverted U-shaped relationship between chronic stress and the motivation to expend effort for reward. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ynstr.2025.100724
Finds an inverted-U-shaped relationship between stress/arousal states and motivation indicators rather than a simple inverse correlation.
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