title: Differential Effects of Oxytocin on Agency and Communion for Anxiously and Avoidantly Attached Individuals.
abstract: Oxytocin promotes prosocial behavior, especially in those individuals who are low in affiliation (e.g., avoidantly attached individuals), but can exacerbate interpersonal insecurities in those preoccupied with closeness (e.g., anxiously attached individuals). One explanation for these opposing observations is that oxytocin induces a communal, other-orientation. Becoming more other oriented should help those people who focus on the self to the exclusion of others, but could be detrimental to those who are other focused but have little sense of an agentic self. Using a within-subjects design, we administered intranasal oxytocin and placebo to 40 males and measured their agency (self-orientation) and communion (other-orientation). Oxytocin produced a slight increase in communion for the average participant; however, as predicted, avoidantly attached individuals were especially likely to perceive themselves as more communal ("kind," "warm," "gentle," etc.) after receiving oxytocin than after receiving the placebo. There was no main effect of oxytocin on agency for the average participant; however, anxiously attached individuals showed a selective decrease in agency ("independent," "self-confident," etc.) following administration of oxytocin. These data help explain the complex social effects of oxytocin.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, McGill University jennifer.bartz@mcgill.ca.
authors.forename: Jennifer A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Bartz
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, McGill University.
authors.forename: John E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Lydon
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kolevzon
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Stanford University.
authors.forename: Jamil
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Medical Center.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hollander
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
authors.forename: Natasha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ludwig
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Columbia University.
authors.forename: Niall
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bolger
mesh_terms: D000281:Administration, Intranasal; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D010121:Oxytocin / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D010551:Personality / Q000187:drug effects*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012649:Self Concept; D012919:Social Behavior; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D010121:Oxytocin
keywords: agency; attachment; communion; human; individual differences; intranasal; oxytocin; social bonds