Two experiments assessed the moderating impact of task context on the relationship between reward and cardiovascular response. Randomly assigned to the cells of a 2 (task context: reward vs. demand)×2 (reward value: low vs. high) between-persons design, participants performed either a memory task with an unclear performance standard (Experiment 1) or a visual scanning task with an unfixed performance standard (Experiment 2). Before performing the task—where participants could earn either a low or a high reward—participants responded to questions about either task reward or task demand. In accordance with the theoretical predictions derived from Wright's (1996) integrative model, reactivity of pre-ejection period increased with reward value if participants had rated aspects of task reward before performing the task. If they had rated task demand, pre-ejection period did not differ as a function of reward. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.