Our lab is interested in the mechanisms by which reward value influences human behavior. Humans learn the rules of a new game by observing wins and losses associated with each option. They gather motivation to take up a challenging task, such a marathon race, by imagining the reward of passing the finish line. The decision to invest in one particular stock market is guided by weighing the profits gained compared to other investments. Given the importance of reward processing for our goal-directed decisions, the impairment of the underlying neural mechanisms can have drastic pathological consequences, as demonstrated in cases such as addiction, depression and even psychosis. Recently, it has been demonstrated that reward signals are not only represented in our brains in terms of their hedonic value or expected utility, but also have a strong effect on the very basic mechanisms of sensory processing. Stimuli associated with high reward have been consistently shown to have a richer and stronger sensory representation than those paired with low rewards. This sensory hyper-sensitization can explain certain pathological states such as enhanced responsiveness of addicted patients towards hedonic cues. On the other hand, when used under controlled conditions, the sensory hyper-sensitization can be used in clinical settings to rehabilitate perceptual impairments such as poor vision or audition. RewardedPerception Project tries to unravel the basic neural mechanisms through which reward value influences sensory processing. To this end, we use a combination of behavioral testing, neuroimaging (electroencephalography; EEG, functional magnetic resonance imaging; fMRI) and advanced data analysis methods. This approach allows us to characterize sensory functions, which can be modulated by associated reward value of different stimuli and the functional circuits that underlie these behavioral effects. Specifically, reward effects on sensory perception require a close communication between brain areas that encode the associated value of a stimulus with areas that track its sensory features. Revealing how this communication is implemented in the brain, and ultimately devising methods to alter it when clinical intervention is warranted, is the ultimate goal of our research.