Cited by 624Neuroendocrine regulation and behaviorHuman-Animal Interaction StudiesNeuropeptides and Animal Physiology

Neuropeptidergic regulation of affiliative behavior and social bonding in animals

Lim, Miranda M., Young, Larry J.·2006·Hormones and Behavior

Abstract

Social relationships are essential for maintaining human mental health, yet little is known about the brain mechanisms involved in the development and maintenance of social bonds. Animal models are powerful tools for investigating the neurobiological mechanisms regulating the cognitive processes leading to the development of social relationships and for potentially extending our understanding of the human condition. In this review, we discuss the roles of the neuropeptides oxytocin and vasopressin in the regulation of social bonding as well as related social behaviors which culminate in the formation of social relationships in animal models. The formation of social bonds is a hierarchical process involving social motivation and approach, the processing of social stimuli and formation of social memories, and the social attachment itself. Oxytocin and vasopressin have been implicated in each of these processes. Specifically, these peptides facilitate social affiliation and parental nurturing behavior, are essential for social recognition in rodents, and are involved in the formation of selective mother-infant bonds in sheep and pair bonds in monogamous voles. The convergence of evidence from these animal studies makes oxytocin and vasopressin attractive candidates for the neural modulation of human social relationships as well as potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of psychiatric disorders associated with disruptions in social behavior, including autism.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2006.06.028

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  • Preclinical studies have found that oxytocin may regulate social-emotional functioning.

    “Preclinical studies have found that the neuropeptide, oxytocin, may regulate socialemotional functioning (Dölen et al., 2013;Hicks et al., 2012;Lim and Young, 2006;Lukas et al., 2011;Onaka et al., 2012).”
  • Duration of affiliative contact was included as a control predictor in the anticipation model to control for its effects on urinary oxytocin levels.

    “We also included duration of affiliative contact as a control predictor in the anticipation model (affiliation duration) to control for its effects on urinary oxytocin levels (26).”
  • Oxytocin acts in the brain by reducing anxiety and fear, enhancing social memory, and activating neural reward circuits.

    “Physiologically, oxytocin acts in the brain by reducing anxiety and fear [19,20], enhancing social memory [16][17][18]21] and activating neural reward circuits [21].”
  • Sharers may experience a mutual increase in positive attitude, resulting in the promotion of stronger social bonds and longer-term benefits of more frequent cooperation.

    “Also, as oxytocin is thought to act on positive feedback circuits [16,17,21], sharers may experience a mutual increase in positive attitude [15,79,80], resulting in the promotion of stronger social bonds and longer-term benefits of more frequent cooperation [23,26,80].”
  • The display of social behaviors is globally controlled by sex hormones and neuromodulators whose level is modulated by sexual experience.

    “The display of social behaviors is globally controlled by sex hormones and neuromodulators (Lim and Young, 2006; Yang and Shah, 2014) whose level is modulated by sexual experience (Ross and Young, 2009; Wu and Gore, 2009).”

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Authors
Lim, M. M., & Young, L. J.
Affiliations
Emory University (US)
Corresponding author
Young, Larry J.
Venue
Hormones and Behavior
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2006-11
Volume
50
Issue
4
Pages
506-517
ISSN
0018-506X (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2025534251
Cited by
624
References
134
Citations by year
2026: 11 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 17 · 2021: 22 · 2020: 17 · 2019: 21 · 2018: 30 · 2017: 42 · 2016: 44 · 2015: 40 · 2014: 60 · 2013: 39 · 2012: 39
FWCI
45.19
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Hormones and Behavior (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute of Mental Health (MH-64692, K02MH064692, MH-56539, F30MH065050, MH 56897, MH65050)
  • National Center for Research Resources (RR-00 165, P51RR000165)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Human-Animal Interaction Studies
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuropeptides and Animal Physiology
Keywords
oxytocin, vasopressin, neuropeptides, social bonding, affiliative behavior, social recognition, social motivation, social memory, mother-infant bond, pair bonding, sheep, autism spectrum disorder, mental illness
MeSH terms
Animals, Behavior, Animal, Brain, Female, Humans, Male, Maternal Behavior, Object Attachment, Oxytocin, Social Behavior, Vasopressins, Models, Animal, Mice, Rats

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