The DOI matches its Crossref record; 47 of the 48 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Oxytocin indexes relational distress following interpersonal harms in women
Open accessAbstract
The hypothalamic neuropeptide oxytocin, known for its involvement in social affiliation and bonding in animals, has recently been associated with a host of prosocial behaviors that are beneficial for maintaining positive social relationships in humans. Paradoxically, however, people with high endogenous levels of oxytocin also tend to report relational distress and interpersonal difficulties in their everyday lives. To address these contradictory findings, oxytocin reactivity was measured in response to a well-defined laboratory task in young adult women following recent interpersonal harms. Elevated mean peripheral oxytocin reactivity (but not baseline levels of oxytocin or cortisol reactivity) was associated with increased post-conflict anxiety and decreased levels of forgiveness. These results corroborate previous research implicating oxytocin as a neuroendocrine marker of relational distress, but not general stress, and demonstrate the utility of studying oxytocin in response to naturally occurring relational events.
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“However, findings regarding peripheral OT are mixed. Whereas some found links between plasma OT and positive communication, affiliation, and emotional support (Gonzaga et al., 2006; Grewen et al., 2005; Holt-Lunstad et al., 2008), others showed associations with negative emotions, anxiety, and distress in romantic couples (Marazziti et al., 2006; Tabak et al., 2010; Taylor et al., 2010).”
From Oxytocin during the initial stages of romantic attachment: Relations to couples’ interactive reciprocity (2012) · cites this paper as Tabak et al., 2010
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In the citing paper
“One recent study found that women whose oxytocin levels spiked after a hurtful relationship experience had greater anxiety and were less forgiving of the slight compared to women who had lower levels of the hormone (Tabak et al. 2011).”
From Natural Selection, Childrearing, and the Ethics of Marriage (and Divorce): Building a Case for the Neuroenhancement of Human Relationships (2012) · cites this paper as Tabak et al. 2011
In the citing paper
“For example, there are some reports that in women, peripheral OT reactivity serves as a marker of relational distress (Tabak et al., 2011), and it has been suggested that these high OT levels in conjunction with positive affiliative contact may serve to motivate approach behavior to seek new friendships and reinstate normal social functioning after conflicts (Bartz and Hollander, 2006;Taylor, 2006”
From The effect of oxytocin on cooperation in a prisoner's dilemma depends on the social context and a person's social value orientation (2014) · cites this paper as Tabak et al., 2011
In the citing paper
“As such, the tend and befriend model has been proposed (74,75), which states that gaps in positive social relationships are accompanied by elevations in OXT and that these increased OXT levels prompt affiliative efforts aimed at restoring positive social contact.”
From Dissecting the Role of Oxytocin in the Formation and Loss of Social Relationships (2016) · cites this paper as [75]
In the citing paper
“Studies imply this role is influenced by an individual’s previous experiences and difficulties in interpersonal relationships (Tabak et al., 2011): difficulties in relationships with primary partner (Taylor et al., 2006), or own infant (i.e. interactive stress) (Feldman et al., 2011), or romantic partner (Marazziti et al., 2006).”
From Approaching the biology of human parental attachment: Brain imaging, oxytocin and coordinated assessments of mothers and fathers (2014) · cites this paper as Tabak et al., 2011
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Cites
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Cited by
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The Social Salience Hypothesis of Oxytocin
Shamay-Tsoory, S. G., & Abu-Akel, A. (2016) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2015.07.020 · Cited by 904
“A growing list of studies have further demonstrated that OT can induce antisocial effects including aggression (14, 16) and that high levels of endogenous OT are associated with relational distress and interpersonal difficulties (17, 18).”
Oxytocin and social affiliation in humans
Feldman, R. (2012) · Hormones and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2012.01.008 · Cited by 767
Problems with measuring peripheral oxytocin: can the data on oxytocin and human behavior be trusted?
McCullough, M. E., Churchland, P. S., & Mendez, A. J. (2013) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.04.018 · Cited by 416
Evaluation of enzyme immunoassay and radioimmunoassay methods for the measurement of plasma oxytocin
Szeto, A., McCabe, P. M., Nation, D. A., Tabak, B. A., Rossetti, M. A., McCullough, M. E., Schneiderman, N., & Mendez, A. J. (2011) · Psychosomatic Medicine · doi:10.1097/psy.0b013e31821df0c2 · Cited by 330
Self-citationSchneiderman, I., Zagoory-Sharon, O., Leckman, J. F., & Feldman, R. (2012) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.12.021 · Cited by 333
“, 2008), others showed associations with negative emotions, anxiety, and distress in romantic couples (Marazziti et al., 2006; Tabak et al., 2010; Taylor et al., 2010).”
Metadata
- Authors
- Tabak, B. A., McCullough, M. E., Szeto, A., Mendez, A. J., & McCabe, P. M.
- Affiliations
- University of Miami (US)
- Corresponding author
- McCullough, Michael E.
- Venue
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2011-01
- Volume
- 36
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 115-122
- ISSN
- 0306-4530 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC2997882
- OpenAlex
- W2048786916
- Cited by
- 116
- References
- 48
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 11 · 2015: 13 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 10 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 9.18
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Psychoneuroendocrinology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH071258)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Forgiveness and Related Behaviors
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Keywords
- oxytocin, relational distress, interpersonal harm, forgiveness, cortisol response, women, social bonding, neuroendocrine markers, interpersonal conflict
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Affect, Anxiety, Conflict, Psychological, Diagnostic Techniques, Endocrine, Female, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Object Attachment, Oxytocin, Research Design, Stress, Psychological, Young Adult
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