ReviewNeuropsychologia2018
The anatomy of apathy: A neurocognitive framework for amotivated behaviour.
Review in Neuropsychologia, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 196 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Accelerated rTMS for Post-Stroke Apathy: Targeting Amotivation Toward Improving Whole Health and Rehabilitation Engagement
Accelerated rTMS for Post-stroke Apathy: A Double-blind Randomized Controlled Trial
Who cites it
196 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 363 citations in OpenAlex.
- Apathy and Physical Activity: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Physiotherapy Canada. Physiotherapie Canada · 2026Pooled it
- A Biopsychosocial Framework for Apathy Following Moderate to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Neuropsychology review · 2024Pooled it
- Apathy Associated with Alzheimer's Disease.Current Alzheimer research · 2024Pooled it
- Apathy and Depression as Predictors of Activities of Daily Living Following Stroke and Traumatic Brain Injuries in Adults: A Meta-Analysis.Neuropsychology review · 2022Pooled it
- Brain mechanisms underlying neuropsychiatric symptoms in Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review of symptom-general and -specific lesion patterns.Molecular neurodegeneration · 2021Pooled it
- Apathy as a Risky Neuropsychiatric Syndrome of Progression From Normal Aging to Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Pooled it
- Unmet Needs in Pharmacological Treatment of Apathy in Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2019Pooled it
- Trial
- Noninvasive Brain Stimulation over the Frontopolar Cortex Promotes Willingness to Exert Cognitive Effort in a Foraging-Like Sequential Choice Task.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2025Trial
- Correlation between changes in apathy and cognition in Alzheimer's disease associated apathy: Analysis of the Apathy in Dementia Methylphenidate Trial 2 (ADMET 2).International psychogeriatrics · 2025Trial
- Brain plasticity underlying acquisition of new organizational skills in children: A Rashomon analysis.Frontiers in neuroimaging · 2025Trial
- Measuring clinically relevant change in apathy symptoms in ADMET and ADMET 2.International psychogeriatrics · 2024Trial
- Trial
- Lesion location may attenuate response to strategy training in acute stroke.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitation · 2022Trial
- Trial
- Bupropion for the Treatment of Apathy in Alzheimer Disease: A Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA network open · 2020Trial
- Adverse policing as a social exposome pathway: Implications for depression, cognition, and dementia risk.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2026Article
- Neural and computational mechanisms of effort under the pressure of a deadline.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Stress-induced motivational impairment is marked by diminished frontocortical cellular communication and neuropeptide signaling.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Non-Pharmacological Interventions for Managing Apathy in Older Adults with Neurocognitive Disorders: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Brain sciences · 2026Review
136 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Apathy is a debilitating syndrome associated with many neurological disorders, including several common neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, and focal lesion syndromes such as stroke. Here, we review neuroimaging studies to identify anatomical correlates of apathy, across brain disorders. Our analysis reveals that apathy is strongly associated with disruption particularly of dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), ventral striatum (VS) and connected brain regions. Remarkably, these changes are consistent across clinical disorders and imaging modalities. Review of the neuroimaging findings allows us to develop a neurocognitive framework to consider potential mechanisms underlying apathy. According to this perspective, an interconnected group of brain regions - with dACC and VS at its core - plays a crucial role in normal motivated behaviour. Specifically we argue that motivated behaviour requires a willingness to work, to keep working, and to learn what is worth working for. We propose that deficits in any one or more of these processes can lead to the clinical syndrome of apathy, and outline specific approaches to test this hypothesis. A richer neurobiological understanding of the mechanisms underlying apathy should ultimately facilitate development of effective therapies for this disabling condition.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.