Evidence is reviewed in support of a role for the mesocorticolimbic dopamine system in motivated behavior as opposed to the hedonic assessment of reward stimuli. Microdialysis studies describe the dynamic changes in dopamine efflux in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) during the development of sensory-specific satiety for food or sexual activity by male rats. These data confirm that dopamine efflux is increased in both regions in anticipation of reward and decreases with the development of satiety. Importantly, presentation of a novel reward stimulus is accompanied by a further increase in dopamine efflux. Neural circuits linking the hippocampal formation to the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens subserve memory-based search behaviors for food reward. Furthermore, dopamine D 1 receptors in the prefrontal cortex selective modulate working memory processes responsible for the accurate recall of the location of food reward. In contrast, dopamine D 1 receptors in the nucleus accumbens modulate memory-based search behavior, without prior knowledge of the location of food. A final series of experiments confirm that dopamine efflux in the medial prefrontal cortex triggered by expectation of food reward is related to the accuracy of recall for the location of food reward. Collectively, these experiments support the hypothesis that dopamine serves as a critical link between motivational and memory processes.