The purpose of this study is to determine whether oxytocin influences memory of social stimuli and reaction to social stimuli. Furthermore the investigators explore the effect of oxytocin receptor (OXTR) polymorphism in terms of behavioral and neural responses to social stimuli.
The prevailing view of OXT as a key facilitator of prosocial behaviors has been highly influenced by a plethora of studies in healthy volunteers, which demonstrated increased interpersonal trust, generosity, social learning/empathy and positively biased social stimulus processing as a result of OXT treatment. However, this interpretation is challenged by observations that OXT also promotes envy and schadenfreude (gloating), ethno-centrism (including prejudice, xenophobia, and racial bias), and defensive aggression towards outsiders.We investigate the neural correlates of emotion perception and subsequent memory effects of aversive and neutral stimuli. Tthe oxytocin effect on personal space is questioned. Additionally the effect of OXTR polymorphism regarding behavioral and neural response is explored.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
TRIPLE
Enrollment
153
intranasal administration, 24 IU oxytocin; ; 3 puffs per nostril, each with 4 IU OXT
Department of Psychiatry, University of Bonn
Bonn, Germany
neural correlates of emotion perception and subsequent memory effects of aversive and neutral stimuli
MRI data are analyzed using SPM8 (Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, London, UK). In the first level analysis the following conditions are modeled: 'neutral: subsequently remembered', 'neutral: subsequently forgotten', 'aversive: subsequently remembered', and 'aversive: subsequently forgotten'.
Time frame: two years
the effect of oxytocin receptor (OXTR) polymorphism in terms of behavioral and neural responses to social stimuli
behavioral social testing, fMRI analysis using SPM8, OXTR genotyping
Time frame: two years
The oxytocin effect on social behavior e.g. personal space is questioned
behavioral testing e.g. personal space
Time frame: two years
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