Oxytocin and vasopressin modulate risk-taking
Open accessAbstract
The modulation of risk-taking is critical for adaptive and optimal behavior. This study examined how oxytocin (OT) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) influence risk-taking in function of three parameters: sex, risk-valence, and social context. Twenty-nine healthy adults (14 males) completed a risk-taking task, the Stunt task, both in a social-stress (evaluation by unfamiliar peers) and non-social context, in three separate drug treatment sessions. During each session, one of three drugs, OT, AVP, or placebo (PLC), was administered intra-nasally. OT and AVP relative to PLC reduced betting-rate (risk-averse effect). This risk-averse effect was further qualified: AVP reduced risk-taking in the positive risk-valence (high win-probability), and regardless of social context or sex. In contrast, OT reduced risk-taking in the negative risk-valence (low win-probability), and only in the social-stress context and men. The reduction in risk-taking might serve a role in defensive behavior. These findings extend the role of these neuromodulators to behaviors beyond the social realm. How the behavioral modulation of risk-taking maps onto the function of the neural targets of OT and AVP may be the next step in this line of research.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
OT and AVP can have differential effects on neural activity (BOLD fMRI responses) and cognition, at least in some cases, although the effects of OT are more robust.
“These data have, however, found OT and AVP can have differential effects on neural activity (i.e., BOLD fMRI responses) and cognition, at least in some cases although the effects of OT are more robust [84; 86; 87; 88; 89; 90].”
From Cross-talk among oxytocin and arginine-vasopressin receptors: Relevance for basic and clinical studies of the brain and periphery (2018) · cites this paper as [87]
The few studies that have compared the effects of intranasally administered OT and AVP in humans have reported that these peptides do not have opposing roles.
“The few studies that have compared the effects of intranasally administered OT and AVP in humans have reported that these peptides do not have opposing roles.”
From Cross-talk among oxytocin and arginine-vasopressin receptors: Relevance for basic and clinical studies of the brain and periphery (2018) · cites this paper as [87]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Gender Differences in Preferences
Croson, R., & Gneezy, U. (2009) · Journal of Economic Literature · doi:10.1257/jel.47.2.448 · Cited by 5,694 · see citing works
Gender differences in risk taking: a meta-analysis
Byrnes, J. P., Miller, D. C., & Schafer, W. D. (1999) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.125.3.367 · Cited by 3,723 · see citing works
Oxytocin increases trust in humans
Kosfeld, M., Heinrichs, M., Zak, P. J., Fischbacher, U., & Fehr, E. (2005) · Nature · doi:10.1038/nature03701 · Cited by 3,690 · see citing works
Heinrichs, M., Baumgartner, T., Kirschbaum, C., & Ehlert, U. (2003) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s0006-3223(03)00465-7 · Cited by 2,091 · see citing works
Oxytocin Modulates Neural Circuitry for Social Cognition and Fear in Humans
Kirsch, P., Esslinger, C., Chen, Q., Mier, D., Lis, S., Siddhanti, S., Gruppe, H., Mattay, V. S., Gallhofer, B., & Meyer-Lindenberg, A. (2005) · The Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.3984-05.2005 · Cited by 1,639 · see citing works
Sniffing neuropeptides: A transnasal approach to the human brain
Born, J., Lange, T., Kern, W., McGregor, G. P., Bickel, U., & Fehm, H. L. (2002) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nn0602-849 · Cited by 1,356 · see citing works
The Neuropeptide Oxytocin Regulates Parochial Altruism in Intergroup Conflict Among Humans
De Dreu, C. K. W., Greer, L. L., Handgraaf, M. J. J., Shalvi, S., Van Kleef, G. A., Baas, M., Ten Velden, F. S., Van Dijk, E., & Feith, S. W. W. (2010) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1189047 · Cited by 1,148 · see citing works
A role for central vasopressin in pair bonding in monogamous prairie voles
Winslow, J. T., Hastings, N., Carter, C. S., Harbaugh, C. R., & Insel, T. R. (1993) · Nature · doi:10.1038/365545a0 · Cited by 948 · cited 2× · see citing works
“, in aggression and social bonding) (Winslow et al., 1993; Thompson et al., 2006).”
BackgroundBrain oxytocin: A key regulator of emotional and social behaviours in both females and males
Neumann, I. D. (2008) · Journal of Neuroendocrinology · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2826.2008.01726.x · Cited by 743 · see citing works
On multi-level modeling of data from repeated measures designs: a tutorial
Quené, H., & van den Bergh, H. (2004) · Speech Communication · doi:10.1016/j.specom.2004.02.004 · Cited by 642 · see citing works
Risky business: the neuroeconomics of decision making under uncertainty
Platt, M. L., & Huettel, S. A. (2008) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nn2062 · Cited by 556 · see citing works
Bielsky, I. F., Hu, S.-B., Szegda, K. L., Westphal, H., & Young, L. J. (2004) · Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1038/sj.npp.1300360 · Cited by 531 · see citing works
Increased brain and plasma oxytocin after nasal and peripheral administration in rats and mice
Neumann, I. D., Maloumby, R., Beiderbeck, D. I., Lukas, M., & Landgraf, R. (2013) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.03.003 · Cited by 511 · see citing works
Modulating social behavior with oxytocin: How does it work? What does it mean?
Churchland, P. S., & Winkielman, P. (2012) · Hormones and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2011.12.003 · Cited by 464 · see citing works
Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID)
Kübler, U. (2013) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_66 · Cited by 445 · see citing works
Vasopressin and oxytocin receptors in the central nervous system
Tribollet, E., & Barberis, C. (1996) · Critical Reviews™ in Neurobiology · doi:10.1615/critrevneurobiol.v10.i1.60 · Cited by 399 · see citing works
Dispositional anxiety and risk-avoidant decision-making
Maner, J. K., Richey, J. A., Timpano, K. R., Mallott, M., Lejuez, C. W., Joiner, T. E., & Schmidt, N. B. (2006) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2006.08.016 · Cited by 380 · see citing works
Ernst, M., & Fudge, J. L. (2009) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2008.10.009 · Cited by 358 · see citing works
Dopaminergic-neuropeptide interactions in the social brain
Skuse, D. H., & Gallagher, L. (2009) · Trends in Cognitive Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.tics.2008.09.007 · Cited by 340 · see citing works
Declerck, C. H., Boone, C., & Kiyonari, T. (2010) · Hormones and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.01.006 · Cited by 331 · see citing works
Ring, R. H., Malberg, J. E., Potestio, L., Ping, J., Boikess, S., Luo, B., Schechter, L. E., Rizzo, S., Rahman, Z., & Rosenzweig-Lipson, S. (2006) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-005-0293-z · Cited by 319 · see citing works
Sex-specific influences of vasopressin on human social communication
Thompson, R. R., George, K., Walton, J. C., Orr, S. P., & Benson, J. (2006) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.0600406103 · Cited by 312 · see citing works
Di Simplicio, M., Massey-Chase, R., Cowen, P., & Harmer, C. (2009) · Journal of Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1177/0269881108095705 · Cited by 229 · see citing works
Smeltzer, M. D., Curtis, J. T., Aragona, B. J., & Wang, Z. (2006) · Neuroscience Letters · doi:10.1016/j.neulet.2005.10.019 · Cited by 222 · see citing works
Selective amnesic effects of oxytocin on human memory
Heinrichs, M., Meinlschmidt, G., Wippich, W., Ehlert, U., & Hellhammer, D. H. (2004) · Physiology & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2004.07.020 · Cited by 205 · see citing works
Selective amnesic effects of oxytocin on human memory.
HEINRICHS, M., MEINLSCHMIDT, G., WIPPICH, W., EHLERT, U., & HELLHAMMER, D. (2004) · Physiology & Behavior · doi:10.1016/s0031-9384(04)00346-4 · Cited by 205 · see citing works
Oxytocin increases anxiety to unpredictable threat
Grillon, C., Krimsky, M., Charney, D. R., Vytal, K., Ernst, M., & Cornwell, B. (2013) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/mp.2012.156 · Cited by 192 · cited 3× · see citing works
“P A A uthor M anuscript participants completed another independent study (Grillon et al., 2013).”
BackgroundInfluentialThe effect of intranasal administration of oxytocin on fear recognition
Fischer-Shofty, M., Shamay-Tsoory, S. G., Harari, H., & Levkovitz, Y. (2010) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2009.09.003 · Cited by 184 · see citing works
Richards, J. M., Plate, R. C., & Ernst, M. (2013) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.03.004 · Cited by 174 · see citing works
Windle, R. J., Shanks, N., Lightman, S. L., & Ingram, C. D. (1997) · Endocrinology · doi:10.1210/en.138.7.2829 · Cited by 170 · see citing works
Reduced risk-taking behavior as a trait feature of anxiety.
Giorgetta, C., Grecucci, A., Zuanon, S., Perini, L., Balestrieri, M., Bonini, N., Sanfey, A. G., & Brambilla, P. (2012) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/a0029119 · Cited by 158 · see citing works
A heartfelt response: oxytocin effects on response to social stress in men and women
Kubzansky, L. D., Mendes, W. B., Appleton, A. A., Block, J., & Adler, G. K. (2012) · Biological Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2012.02.010 · Cited by 142 · see citing works
Oxytocin facilitates accurate perception of competition in men and kinship in women
Fischer-Shofty, M., Levkovitz, Y., & Shamay-Tsoory, S. G. (2013) · Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience · doi:10.1093/scan/nsr100 · Cited by 132 · see citing works
Zink, C. F., Stein, J. L., Kempf, L., Hakimi, S., & Meyer‐Lindenberg, A. (2010) · Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.4899-09.2010 · Cited by 131 · see citing works
Intranasal oxytocin administration is reflected in human saliva
Weisman, O., Zagoory-Sharon, O., & Feldman, R. (2012) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.02.014 · Cited by 120 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Song, Z., & Albers, H. E. (2018) · Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.yfrne.2017.10.004 · Cited by 244 · see citing works
Neural systems and hormones mediating attraction to infant and child faces
Luo, L. (2015) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00970 · Cited by 80 · see citing works
Hormones as “difference makers” in cognitive and socioemotional aging processes
Ebner, N. C., Kamin, H. S., Diaz, V. G., Cohen, R. A., & MacDonald, K. S. (2015) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01595 · Cited by 56 · see citing works
The Microbiome and Mental Health: Looking Back, Moving Forward with Lessons from Allergic Diseases
Logan, A. C., Jacka, F. N., Craig, J. M., & Prescott, S. L. (2016) · Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neuroscience · doi:10.9758/cpn.2016.14.2.131 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Oxytocin modulates meta-mood as a function of age and sex
Ebner, N. C., Horta, M., Lin, T., Feifel, D., Fischer, H., & Cohen, R. A. (2015) · Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnagi.2015.00175 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
Dumais, K. M., Kulkarni, P. P., Ferris, C. F., & Veenema, A. H. (2017) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2017.04.003 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Yang, X., Wang, W., Wang, X. T., & Wang, Y. W. (2021) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.03.033 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Relationship between Salivary Oxytocin Levels and Generosity in Preschoolers
Fujii, T., Schug, J. R., Nishina, K., Takahashi, T., Okada, H., & Takagishi, H. (2016) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/srep38662 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Adversity impacting on oxytocin and behaviour: timing matters
Johnson, J. L., & Buisman‐Pijlman, F. T. A. (2016) · Behavioural Pharmacology · doi:10.1097/fbp.0000000000000269 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Oxytocin attenuates aversive response to nicotine and anxiety-like behavior in adolescent rats
Lee, H., Jang, M., & Noh, J. (2016) · Neuroscience Research · doi:10.1016/j.neures.2016.11.007 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
The (Null) Effect of Affective Touch on Betrayal Aversion, Altruism, and Risk Taking
Koppel, L., Andersson, D., Morrison, I., Västfjäll, D., & Tinghög, G. (2017) · Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2017.00251 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Influence of HFD-induced precocious puberty on neurodevelopment in mice
Bo, T., Wen, J., Gao, W., Tang, L., Liu, M., & Wang, D. (2021) · Nutrition & Metabolism · doi:10.1186/s12986-021-00604-w · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Deng, G., Ai, H., Qin, L., Xu, J., Feng, C., & Xu, P. (2022) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291722002483 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Wu, X., Xu, P., Luo, Y., & Feng, C. (2018) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2018.00329 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Sexually dimorphic behavioral and neural responses to a predator scent
Francesconi, J. A., Macaroy, C., Sawant, S., Hamrick, H., Wahab, S., Klein, I., & McGann, J. P. (2020) · Behavioural Brain Research · doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2020.112467 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Zebhauser, P. T., Macchia, A., Gold, E., Salcedo, S., Burum, B., Alonso‐Alonso, M., Gilbert, D. T., Pascual‐Leone, Á., & Brem, A. (2022) · Biomedicines · doi:10.3390/biomedicines10123230 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Oxytocin-induced anxiogenic behavior in juvenile male rats
Jang, M., Jung, T., Kang, M., Kim, J., & Noh, J. (2021) · Animal Cells and Systems · doi:10.1080/19768354.2021.1995485 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Hagan, A., Xu, L., Klugah‐Brown, B., Li, J., Jiang, X., & Kendrick, K. M. (2025) · Frontiers in Pharmacology · doi:10.3389/fphar.2024.1460513 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Neurotransmitters and Hormones in Human Decision-Making
Rivera, L. F. S., & Gouvêia, A. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-61721-9_15 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Berends, Y. R., Tulen, J. H. M., Wierdsma, A. I., de Rijke, Y. B., Kushner, S. A., & Marle, H. J. C. V. (2021) · Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.cpnec.2021.100080 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Age and Social Context Modulate the Effect of Anxiety on Risk-taking in Pediatric Samples
Rosen, D. K., Patel, N., Pavletić, N., Grillon, C., Pine, D. S., & Ernst, M. (2015) · Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology · doi:10.1007/s10802-015-0098-4 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Uzar, M., Dmitrzak‐Węglarz, M., & Słopień, A. (2024) · International Journal of Molecular Sciences · doi:10.3390/ijms252212046 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Yang, S., Xu, Q., & Li, P. (2020) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.104597 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Neuropeptidergic systems in psychiatric disorders
Hodzic, S., & Riedemann, T. (2026) · Frontiers in Endocrinology · doi:10.3389/fendo.2025.1654292 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Çetinkaya, M., Üneri, Ö. Ş., & Göker, Z. (2018) · Psychiatry and Clinical Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1080/24750573.2018.1505280 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Bové, M., Sikora, V., Dimonte, S., Agosti, L. P., Santoro, M., Palmieri, M. A., Tucci, P., Morgese, M. G., Trabace, L., & Schiavone, S. (2025) · Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2025.111504 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
The Effects of vasopressin on human social behaviors
Wu, X., Feng, C., Xu, J., He, Z., Luo, Y., & Luo, Y. (2019) · Advances in Psychological Science · doi:10.3724/sp.j.1042.2019.00811 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Faraji, M., Viera-Resto, O. A., Berrios, B. J., Bizon, J. L., & Setlow, B. (2025) · Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.1037/bne0000621
Neurogenetics of Human Decision-Making
Hogeterp, S. A., Vetterlein, A., & Reuter, M. (2025) · Studies in neuroscience, psychology and behavioral economics · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-00880-0_12
- Authors
- Patel, N., Grillon, C., Pavletic, N., Rosen, D., Pine, D. S., & Ernst, M.
- Affiliations
- National Institutes of Health (US)
- Venue
- Physiology & Behavior
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2015-02
- Volume
- 139
- Pages
- 254-260
- ISSN
- 0031-9384 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4274653
- OpenAlex
- W2045037937
- Cited by
- 29
- References
- 34
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 4
- FWCI
- 5.43
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Physiology & Behavior (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health (MH002798)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Keywords
- oxytocin, vasopressin, risk-taking, risk aversion, social stress, sex differences, neuromodulators, defensive behavior
- MeSH terms
- Administration, Intranasal, Adult, Anxiety, Arginine Vasopressin, Double-Blind Method, Female, Humans, Male, Oxytocin, Probability, Psychological Tests, Psychotropic Drugs, Surveys and Questionnaires, Reaction Time, Risk-Taking, Sex Characteristics, Social Behavior, Stress, Psychological, Cross-Over Studies, Young Adult
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
