Reward and Recognition at Work: What’s the Brain Got to Do with It?

Strategies used to reward and recognize employees’ efforts have become more sophisticated over the years. However, only recently have employers begun to move beyond traditional (usually financial) incentives and consider ways to make work truly rewarding. In addition, state-of-the-art social and affective neuroscience—using techniques such as fMRI, or functional magnetic resonance imaging—has illuminated how the brain responds to various types of rewards.