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The prosocial effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA): Controlled studies in humans and laboratory animals
Open accessAbstract
Users of ±3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA; 'ecstasy') report prosocial effects such as sociability and empathy. Supporting these apparently unique social effects, data from controlled laboratory studies indicate that MDMA alters social feelings, information processing, and behavior in humans, and social behavior in rodents. Here, we review this growing body of evidence. In rodents, MDMA increases passive prosocial behavior (adjacent lying) and social reward while decreasing aggression, effects that may involve serotonin 1A receptor mediated oxytocin release interacting with vasopressin receptor 1A. In humans, MDMA increases plasma oxytocin and produces feelings of social affiliation. It decreases identification of negative facial expressions (cognitive empathy) and blunts responses to social rejection, while enhancing responses to others' positive emotions (emotional empathy) and increasing social approach. Thus, consistent with drug folklore, laboratory administration of MDMA robustly alters social processing in humans and increases social approach in humans and animals. Effects are consistent with increased sociability, with mixed evidence about enhanced empathy. These neurobiologically-complex prosocial effects likely motivate recreational ecstasy use.
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“Additionally, by dampening reactivity to negative emotional stimuli, MDMA may support more constructive engagement with distressing relational patterns (153).”
From Psychoanalytically informed MDMA-assisted therapy for pathological narcissism: a novel theoretical approach (2025) · cites this paper as [153]
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“Acutely, MDMA has been described as a prototypical entactogen and is recreationally used for its prosocial effects (20).”
From Modulation of Social Cognition via Hallucinogens and “Entactogens” (2019) · cites this paper as [20]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Kamilar-Britt, P., & Bedi, G.
- Affiliations
- New York State Psychiatric Institute (US)
- Corresponding author
- Bedi, Gillinder
- Venue
- Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2015-10
- Volume
- 57
- Pages
- 433-446
- ISSN
- 0149-7634 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4678620
- OpenAlex
- W1810864195
- Cited by
- 163
- References
- 99
- Citations by year
- 2026: 11 · 2025: 24 · 2024: 23 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 16 · 2016: 7
- FWCI
- 1.72
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- NIDA (DA029679, DA034877)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychedelics and Drug Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Keywords
- MDMA, ecstasy, prosocial behavior, sociability, empathy, social affiliation, oxytocin, vasopressin, 5-HT1A receptor, social reward, aggression, social rejection, facial expression recognition, social approach, rodents
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Social Behavior, N-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine
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