Motivation and emotion/Book/2024/Dopamine and social behaviour

Dopamine and social behaviour:
What role does dopamine play in social interactions and relationships?

Multimedia presentation (3 min)

Overview

Dopamine affecting social interactions scenario Figure 1. Is a depiction of how different interactions can different emotions. Imagine that you have just met two different people Jack and Richard. When talking to Jack he was highly enthusiastic in talking to you and you immediately connected. You suddenly have this desire to continue interacting with this person in the future. However, when interacting with Richard, you found him to be quite rude and blunt to you for no foreseeable reason, and this led to you just wanting to leave as quickly as possible.

• Dopamine role on social interaction largely revolves around re-engaging with the stimuli again through the use of the reward-seeking theory
• Deficits in our dopamine pathway's can result in maladaptive interactions with others (effects both relationships and social interactions)
• Show the importance that dopamine has on the initial stages of relationship forming, as well as how it alters as stimuli becomes familiar
• How social interaction and relationships can affect dopamine, which consequently affects social interaction and relationships

Focus questions: How does dopamine affect an individual after a social interaction? What happens to social interaction and or relationships when the dopamine system isn't functioning correctly? How does social interaction and relationships effect the dopamine system in a cyclical nature? Apart from reward-seeking, what are the other roles of dopamine on social interaction and relationships?

What is dopamine?

Figure 2. This image shows the pathways dopamine can go through, as well as the important locations for the dopamine system.

Dopamine (DA) is a chemical neurotransmitter which plays a key role in reward seeking behaviour, learning, mood regulation and more recently has be linked with being involved in aversive and alerting processes (Bromberg-Martin et al., 2010). While DA is linked with affecting all the processes mentioned above, DA's primary role is incentivising reward seeking behaviour through the release of DA in the nucleus accumbens (Lewis et al., 2021). This process occurs unconsciously and follows an event. It is what drives us to continuing doing something. I am sure that we have all got that feel-good feeling from talking to someone, or completing an exam, that sensation is due to the release of DA. It makes us happy when we achieve something we are striving for, in an attempt to get us to re-engage with that task again.

Furthermore, DA is not restricted to one particular site in the brain, and is rather a complex system that is connected via dopaminergic pathways (See Figure 2.). This allows the neurotransmitter to affect and trigger certain areas within the brain, consequently causing a specific response (Lewis et al., 2021). Moreover, DA is not a single receptor, it is rather broken down into 5 different receptors, each receptor has there own specific function that is linked with the processes provided above (See Table 1.). Lastly, there are two different modes of DA (tonic and phasic stages). Both modes are important, and represent different processes. The tonic stage is responsible for maintaining a slow steady state of DA flowing through the neural structures to maintain the baseline. This allows for normal function of the neural circuits, and assists in motor movement. Whereas the phasic mode of DA, is activated through reward-related sensory cues, and consists of short rapid bursts of DA over a short period of time. This process acts as a incentive to re-engage with that stimulus ((Bromberg-Martin et al., 2010) & (Schultz, 1998) & (Collins & Sanders, 2019)).

Table 1. Types of Receptors and their respective functions
Type	Function	Location in the brain
D1	Memory, attention, impulse control, regulation of renal function, locomotion	Striatum, nucleus accumbens, olfactory bulb, and substantia nigra
D2	Locomotion, attention, sleep, memory, learning	Striatum, external globus pallidus, nucleus accumbens, hippocampus, amygdala, and cerebal cortex
D3	Cognition, impulse control, attention, sleep
D4	Cognition, memory, fear, impulse control, attention, sleep
D5	Decision making, cognition, attention, renin secretion	Striatum, nucleus accumbens, olfactory bulb, and substantia nigra

Note. The location of each receptor is only considering where the receptor is found in high concentration (Bhatia et al., 2023).

Theories driving dopamine

Dopamine (DA) theories can be seen through two paths. The first path of theories takes a biological stance, and looks at the role DA plays in the brain. Whereas the second path looks at how DA can cause psychological disorders. For the purposes of how DA affects social interaction and relationships, both paths are important, as they both can affect an individuals social interaction and or relationships in a positive or negative way depending on DA release.

Biological underpinnings

Dopamine has its strongest routes in incentivising reward seeking behaviour. The most common theory on this process is the reward prediction error theory (RPE). the theory of RPE, states that when a stimulus is better than expected, more DA neurons fire, whereas if the stimulus was worse than expected, then we would see a decrease in DA firing (Bromberg-Martin et al., 2010).

• Reward-seeking actions (Most conventional theory for dopamine) ((Bromberg-Martin et al., 2010) & (Ronaldi, 2014) & (Collins & Sanders, 2019))

• Non-reward events - there is no intrinsic rewards, and no cues to future rewards. This is considered to be tied to motivation ((Bromberg-Martin et al., 2010) & (Collins & Sanders, 2019 (section 4.2, personal note))
  • Broken down into two subcategory (Aversive and alerting) - important in showing how it can disrupt social interactions and relationships.
• Reward prediction error theory - use a figure.
• Decision making theory

Psychological disorders

As we have shown above, there is strong theoretical grounds to show that DA is an adaptive process. However, what research shows is that is not always the case. There is a body of research providing evidence that DA is responsible for various psychological disorders such as schizophrenia, depression, anxiety and ADHD. The basis of this research is around the mono-amine theory which suggests when there is an imbalance or deficit in a specific neurotransmitter (Dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine) it will cause a specific disorder, and by restoring the balance, we can alleviate the atypical behaviour (Delgado, 2000). Although, as Delgado (2000), and Boku et al. (2018) show, while this hypothesis does provide the theoretical basis for antidepressants and inhibitor medication, what they show is that rather than curing the 'deficit' it rather creates a reliance on the drug. This is problematic, because while this theory shows how DA can cause psychological disorders, there is contention on the extent of the validity. That being said it does provide us with a basis to show that when DA is not functioning correctly it can result in maladaptive processes, which can consequently result in reduction in social interactions and relationships.

Another theory of note is the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia. Similar to the monoamine hypothesis, this theory hypothesises that if the individual has hyperactivity in their dopaminergic pathways, than they will experience psychosis (Howes & Kapur, 2009). Contrary to the monoamine hypothesis, DA has had substantial amount of research showing the validity of blocking DA receptors to reduce the activity within the dopaminergic pathways, to consequently reduce the severity of the psychotic episode. More recent research has suggested the inclusion of other neurotransmitters such as serotonin and glutamate (Stahl, 2018), but the main takeaway from this theory is that abnormal activity within the dopaminergic pathways can result in maladaptive processes which can affect societal perceptions.

The effects of dopamine on social interaction

Dopamine and its effect on social interactions can be broken up into two sections, direct effects and indirect effects. For example, dopamine directly affects social interactions by modulating the amount of dopamine that is released after a social interaction, and therefore, either making it more or less likely that the interaction will re-occur in the future. Whereas, an indirect effect would be how dysfunction adaptation cause an individual to increase and or decrease the amount of social interactions they engage in due to their specific circumstances.

Direct effect

When considering how dopamine (DA) affects social interaction we must understand when DA occurs in social interactions. Most current literature suggests that DA occurs following an event. Therefore, If we had a positive social interaction, than following the interaction a burst of DA will occur. Conversely, if the social interaction was negative in someway, than no DA burst would occur (Halbout et al., 2019). This distinction of when DA occurs and what situation causes DA to release is important because it shows why certain social interactions cause you to want more, and others cause you to avoid them. It all comes down to our desire to seek rewarding behaviours, and avoid behaviours that we don't like (XXXX, XXXX). To provide an example if we look at our earlier scenario following the interaction with Jack, the individual would have received a DA burst, which consequently would drive them to re-engage with Jack to get that DA burst again. Similarly, if we access the social interaction with Richard, as the interaction was negative, no DA burst was given, and therefore, the individual would be less motivated to re-engage with Richard.

• Dopamine (DA) is crucial in the events that precede the event, it is crucial to distinct that while DA is a motivator, it always follows the event, and is rather important for maintaining the conditioned stimulus. Absence of the DA burst, we see rapid extinction of previous habits (Halbout et al., 2019).--
  • While the research above shows that it always follows an event, Dai et al. (2022) show that the nucleus accumbens (NA) shows a significant increase in DA, when the individual is in social investigation and they encounter novel stimuli as opposed to a stimuli that they are already familiar with.
  • The ventral tegmental area (VTA) has also been shown to increase in activity during unfamiliar interactions. Leading to the idea that DA plays a crucial role in the initial stages, despite the lack of reward cure (Solié et al., 2022). Bariselli et al., (2018) show similar findings, classifying the VTA as crucial for non-familiar con-specific stimuli, and attribute this to this process leaving a plasticity trace, for it to be later strengthened and turned into a familiar stimuli that receives less activation.
• Behavioural effects, ie. how coming off a major dopamine burst, can help increase social interactions.
• Aversive and avoidant behaviours.

Test yourself

1 XXXX True False 2 XXXX True False

Dysfunctional adaptations

• Brief overview on how dopamine can result in maladaptive behaviours, which consequently effect social interactions.

Psychological disorders

• Discuss how disorders like depression and anxiety can affect they way someone interacts socially (Mono-amine hypothesis)
• Specific receptors responsible for certain diseases such as parkinsons

Addiction

• Dopamine can regulate emotions, and alter personality expression, for example it could increase aggression
• Maladaptive reward systems can result in addiction (Chiara & Bassareo, 2007)
  

The effects of dopamine on relationships

Novel stimuli

• D2 and D3 dopamine receptors responsible for the mating stage of dating (Takahashi et al., 2015)
• D1 receptor is important for the acquisition phase (Love, 2013)
• D2 receptor important for familiar stimuli. Reduction in the nucleus accumbens results in a reduction of this receptor

Familiar stimuli

• Show how the dopamine bursts, alter as a stimuli becomes familiar. Note that it doesn't disappear, as you want to keep the relationship. Use honeymoon phase of relationships as an example (find research)
• What brain regions are important, when the individual becomes a consistent relationship, and why this can either cause the individual to maintain and or dissolve the relationship.
• How relationships, can cause a dopamine surge, and prevent you from taking note on red flags.

Test yourself

1 XXXX True False 2 XXXX True False

The inter-relations between each other

• Talk about how negative social interactions can lead to social isolation, which results in the dopamine pathways being weakened (find research)
• How issues like break ups in relationships can cause a dopamine crash (find research)
• How social interactions and relationships can cause issues with depression, anxiety etc... (Mono amine hypothesis) (find research)

Test yourself

1 XXXX True False 2 XXXX True False

Conclusion

• Summarise the relationship between dopamine and social interactions, as well as relationships
• Provide a portion that goes over the maladaptive processes that dopamine can cause, and consequently affect social interactions and relationships
• Note that different dopamine receptors are responsible for different processes, as well as the recommendation that there is still much more research that needs to be done on the aversive and alerting responses of dopamine (Non-reward events)
• Provide a concluding statement on the interaction that they have on each other, and that its not necessarily uni-directional in terms of effect.

See also

• Dopamine (Wikipedia)
• Neurotransmitter (Wikipedia)
• Dopamine and learning (Book chapter, 2024)
• Dopamine and motivational drive (Book chapter, 2021)

References (Make sure its in alphabetical order & hanging)

Berke, J. (2018). What does dopamine mean? Nature neuroscience, 21(6), 787–793. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-018-0152-y.

Bhatia, A., Lenchner, J. R., & Saadabadi, A. (2019). Biochemistry, dopamine receptors. In: StatPearls [Internet]. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538242/.

Boku, S., Nakagawa, S., Toda, H., & Hishimoto, A. (2018). Neural basis of major depressive disorder: Beyond monoamine hypothesis. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 72, 3–12. https://doi.org/10.1111/pcn.12604

Bromberg-Martin, E. S., Matsumoto, M., & Hikosaka, O. (2010). Dopamine in motivational control: rewarding, aversive, and alerting. Neuron, 68(5), 815–834. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2010.11.022

Chiara, D. C., & Bassareo, V. (2007). Reward system and addiction: what dopamine does and doesn’t do. Current Opinion in Pharmacology 7(1), 69–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coph.2006.11.003.

Collins, A. L., & Saunders, B. T. (2020). Heterogeneity in striatal dopamine circuits: Form and function in dynamic reward seeking. Journal of Neuroscience Research, 98(6), 1046–1069. https://doi.org/10.1002/jnr.24587

Dai, B., Sun, F., Tong, X., Ding, Y., Kuang, A., Osakada, T., Li, Y. (2022). Responses and functions of dopamine in nucleus accumbens core during social behaviors. Cell Reports, 40(8) 111246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2022.111246

Love, T. M. (2013). Oxytocin, Motivation and the Role of Dopamine. Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior, 119, 49–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbb.2013.06.011.

Ranaldi, R. (2014). Dopamine and reward seeking: the role of ventral tegmental area.Reviews in the Neurosciences, 25(5), 62–630. https://doi.org/10.1515/revneuro-2014-0019

Solié, C., Girard, B., Righetti, B., Tapparel, M., & Bellone, C. (2022).VTA dopamine neuron activity encodes social interaction and promotes reinforcement learning through social prediction error. Nature Neuroscience, 25(1), 86–97. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-021-00972-9.

Takahashi, K., Mizuno, K., Sasaki, A. T., Wada, Y., Tanaka, M., Ishii, A., Tajima, K., Tsuyuguchi, N., Watanabe, K., Zeki, S., & Watanabe, Y. (2015). Imaging the passionate stage of romantic love by dopamine dynamics. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 9, 191. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2015.00191.

Lewis, R. G., Florio, E., Punzo, D., Borrelli, E. (2021). The Brain’s Reward System in Health and Disease. In: Engmann, O., Brancaccio, M. (eds) Circadian Clock in Brain Health and Disease. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, (vol 1344, 57–69). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-81147-1_4

Schultz, W. (1998). Predictive Reward Signal of Dopamine Neurons. Journal of Neurophysiology, 80(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.1998.80.1.1

Delgado, P. L. (2000). Depression: the case for a monoamine deficiency. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 61(6), 7–11. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10775018/

Howes, O. D., & Kapur, S. (2009). The Dopamine Hypothesis of Schizophrenia: Version III—The Final Common Pathway. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 35(3), 549–562. https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbp006.

Stahl, S. M. (2018). Beyond the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia to three neural networks of psychosis: dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate. CNS Spectrums, 23, 187–191. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1017/S1092852918001013

External links

• Dopamine: The pathway to pleasure (Harvard Health Publishing, 2024)
• Study reveals role of dopamine and serotonin in social behavior, decision-making (Atrium Health, 2024)
• Love’s chemistry: how dopamine shapes bonds and breakups (Neuroscience news, 2024)
• Dopamine: brain chemical helps us understand other people – raising hopes for new treatments (The Conversation, 2024)
• Link GenAI for images.
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