LAUSR

The basal ganglia are a group of subcortical nuclei that play a critical role in goal-directed behaviour by setting motivation, adjusting the vigour of actions, and driving reinforcement learning. Detailed knowledge exists of how these nuclei contribute to the different aspects of goal-directed behaviour in the context of reward-seeking, but far less is known about how they work in a framework of avoiding threats. This review will highlight recent work that has begun exploring how the non-motor output of the basal ganglia, from the ventral pallidum (VP) and the habenula-projecting globus pallidus (GPh), are essential in driving the motivation to avoid punishment and the learning from aversive outcomes. We consider the VP and GPh in turn and discuss the circuitry and neural encoding that support their functions, while underscoring the unanswered questions in the field.