Oxytocin increases the likeability of physically formidable men.

Frances S Chen, Jennifer Mayer, Thomas Mussweiler, Markus Heinrichs

Open access · bronzeAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial

In one paragraph

Trial report in Social cognitive and affective neuroscience, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

1citing papers in PubMed

1.2field-weighted citation impact, top 17% of its field

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

Oxytocin Facilitates Social Learning by Promoting Conformity to Trusted Individuals.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2019
Review

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Frances S ChenDepartment of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada, Department of Psychology, University of Cologne, D-50931 Cologne, Germany and Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany Department of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada, Department of Psychology, University of Cologne, D-50931 Cologne, Germany and Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany frances.chen@psych.ubc.ca.

Jennifer MayerDepartment of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada, Department of Psychology, University of Cologne, D-50931 Cologne, Germany and Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany.

Thomas MussweilerDepartment of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada, Department of Psychology, University of Cologne, D-50931 Cologne, Germany and Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany.

Markus HeinrichsDepartment of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada, Department of Psychology, University of Cologne, D-50931 Cologne, Germany and Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany Department of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada, Department of Psychology, University of Cologne, D-50931 Cologne, Germany and Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany.

University of Cologne · DEUniversity of British Columbia · CAUniversity of Freiburg · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Physical size and strength are associated with dominance and threat. The current study tested (i) whether men's evaluations of male strangers would be negatively influenced by cues indicating physical formidability, and (ii) whether these evaluations would be influenced by oxytocin, a neuropeptide that mediates social behavior and reduces social anxiety. In a placebo-controlled double-blind design, we administered either oxytocin (24 I.U.) or placebo intranasally to 100 healthy males and assessed their responses to an image of either a physically formidable (strong) or physically non-formidable (weak) male peer. Whereas participants receiving placebo expressed dislike and avoidance of the strong male relative to the weak male, oxytocin selectively improved social evaluation of the strong male. These results provide first evidence that oxytocin regulates social evaluation of peers based on body features indicating strength and formidability. We discuss the possibility that oxytocin may promote the expansion of social networks by increasing openness toward potentially threatening individuals.

Indexed as

Social BehaviorSocial PerceptionAdministration, IntranasalAdultDouble-Blind MethodEmotionsHumansMaleOxytocinPhotic StimulationYoung AdultOxytocinbody morphologyneuropeptidesoxytocinsocial evaluationsocial perception

Identifiers

PMID25193946

DOI10.1093/scan/nsu116

PMCPMC4448020

OpenAlexW2126677438

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.