The Steroid/Peptide Theory of Social Bonds: Integrating testosterone and peptide responses for classifying social behavioral contexts
Abstract
Hormones, and hormone responses to social contexts, are the proximate mechanisms of evolutionary pathways to pair bonds and other social bonds. Testosterone (T) is implicated in tradeoffs relevant to pair bonding, and oxytocin (OT) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) are positively tied to social bonding in a variety of species. Here, we present the Steroid/Peptide Theory of Social Bonds (S/P Theory), which integrates T and peptides to provide a model, set of predictions, and classification system for social behavioral contexts related to social bonds. The S/P Theory also resolves several paradoxes apparent in the literature on social bonds and hormones: the Offspring Defense Paradox, Aggression Paradox, and Intimacy Paradox. In the S/P Theory, we partition aggression into antagonistic and protective aggression, which both increase T but exert distinct effects on AVP and thus social bonds. Similarly, we partition intimacy into sexual and nurturant intimacy, both of which increase OT and facilitate social bonds, but exert distinct effects on T. We describe the utility of the S/P Theory for classifying 'tricky' behavioral contexts on the basis of their hormonal responses using partner cuddling, a behavior which is assumed to be nurturant but increases T, as a test case of the S/P Theory. The S/P Theory provides a comparative basis for conceptualizing and testing evolved hormonal pathways to pair bonds with attention to species, context, and gender/sex specificities and convergences.
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Testosterone is linked to aggression when high and to parental care when low.
“Testosterone is associated with both aggression and parental care (at higher vs. lower levels, respectively; van Anders, Goldey, & Kuo, 2011; Wingfield, Hegner, Dufty, & Ball, 1990).”
From Prospective and dyadic associations between expectant parents’ prenatal hormone changes and postpartum parenting outcomes (2017) · cites this paper as van Anders, Goldey, & Kuo, 2011
The study's findings align with prior work showing negative links between testosterone and nurturant or caregiving behavior.
“Our findings are consistent with research documenting negative associations between testosterone and nurturant or caregiving behavior (Roney & Gettler, 2015; van Anders et al., 2011).”
From Prospective and dyadic associations between expectant parents’ prenatal hormone changes and postpartum parenting outcomes (2017) · cites this paper as van Anders et al., 2011
As in some species, low testosterone is linked to nurturance and high oxytocin is linked to social bonding, and together these results suggest that food sharing might provide the optimal conditions for social bonding.
“As in some species, low testosterone is linked to nurturance (i.e.behaviours that involve gentle warm contact with others) [70] and high oxytocin is linked to social bonding [70], and together these results suggest that food sharing might provide the optimal conditions for social bonding (see [70]).”
From Food sharing is linked to urinary oxytocin levels and bonding in related and unrelated wild chimpanzees (2014) · cites this paper as [70]
The link between food sharing and oxytocin found in chimpanzees may also be relevant for humans.
“This link between food sharing and oxytocin found in chimpanzees may also be relevant for humans [70], where pro-social behaviour has often been linked to food sharing and provisioning [46,81,82].”
From Food sharing is linked to urinary oxytocin levels and bonding in related and unrelated wild chimpanzees (2014) · cites this paper as [70]
Both receivers and donors perceived the food-sharing interaction positively.
“suggesting that both perceived the interaction positively [70].”
From Food sharing is linked to urinary oxytocin levels and bonding in related and unrelated wild chimpanzees (2014) · cites this paper as [70]
High oxytocin and low testosterone might induce gentle affiliation, or nurturant behavior.
“Taken together, these studies suggest that high oxytocin and low testosterone might induce gentle affiliation, or nurturant behavior (van Anders et al., 2011)—a similar pattern as is expected for new human fathers (Storey et al., 2000; Gordon et al., 2010).”
From Endogenous peripheral oxytocin measures can give insight into the dynamics of social relationships: a review (2014) · cites this paper as van Anders et al., 2011
High levels of testosterone are associated with sociosexual competition, and low levels of testosterone are associated with nurturing physical contact with a partner.
“To the extent that high levels of testosterone are associated with sociosexual competition, and low levels of testosterone are associated with nurturing physical contact with a partner (van Anders et al., 2011)”
From Oxytocin facilitates fidelity in well-established marmoset pairs by reducing sociosexual behavior toward opposite-sex strangers (2014) · cites this paper as van Anders et al., 2011
The steroid/peptide theory of social bonds provides a series of predictions for the integration of the OT system and the HPG axis, which is known to play a role in the formation of sociosexual relationships.
“Additionally, the steroid/peptide theory of social bonds (van Anders et al., 2011) provides a series of predictions for the integration of the OT system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis, which is known to play a role in the formation of sociosexual relationships (Burnham et al., 2003; van Anders and Goldey, 2010).”
From Oxytocin facilitates fidelity in well-established marmoset pairs by reducing sociosexual behavior toward opposite-sex strangers (2014) · cites this paper as van Anders et al., 2011
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“Our findings are consistent with research documenting negative associations between testosterone and nurturant or caregiving behavior (Roney & Gettler, 2015; van Anders et al., 2011).”
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Kuo, P. X., Braungart-Rieker, J. M., Burke Lefever, J. E., Sarma, M. S., O'Neill, M., & Gettler, L. T. (2018) · Hormones and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2018.08.011 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Self-citationBeyond “oxytocin = good”: neural complexities and the flipside of social bonds
van Anders, S. M., Goodson, J. L., & Kingsbury, M. A. (2013) · Archives of Sexual Behavior · doi:10.1007/s10508-013-0134-9 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Self-citationBakker-Huvenaars, M. J., Greven, C. U., Herpers, P., Wiegers, E., Jansen, A., van der Steen, R., van Herwaarden, A. E., Baanders, A. N., Nijhof, K. S., Scheepers, F., et al. (2020) · European Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1016/j.euroneuro.2018.07.097 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Oxytocin and vulnerable romantic relationships
Grebe, N. M., Kristoffersen, A. A., Grøntvedt, T. V., Emery Thompson, M., Kennair, L. E. O., & Gangestad, S. W. (2017) · Hormones and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.02.009 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Alyousefi-van Dijk, K., van ‘t Veer, A. E., Meijer, W. M., Lotz, A. M., Rijlaarsdam, J., Witteman, J., & Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J. (2019) · Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00105 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Feng, T., An, S., Kinden, R., Zhang, X., Jia, R., & Tai, F. (2019) · Behavioural Brain Research · doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2019.02.038 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
- Authors
- van Anders, S. M., Goldey, K. L., & Kuo, P. X.
- Affiliations
- University of Michigan (US)
- Venue
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2011-10
- Volume
- 36
- Issue
- 9
- Pages
- 1265-1275
- ISSN
- 0306-4530 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2160353830
- Semantic Scholar
- a73a60dca3646f7b3ba635544d26fdd5a04b1256
- Cited by
- 321
- References
- 76
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 17 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 29 · 2019: 44 · 2018: 31 · 2017: 21 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 35 · 2014: 21 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 11
- FWCI
- 2.36
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Psychoneuroendocrinology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Lincoln (University of Nebraska) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics › Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Keywords
- pair bonding, social bonds, testosterone, oxytocin, vasopressin, social behavior, aggression, intimacy, hormone signaling pathways, sex differences, evolutionary psychology
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Models, Biological, Models, Theoretical, Pair Bond, Gonadal Steroid Hormones, Social Behavior, Social Environment, Testosterone, Peptide Hormones
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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.
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