Oxytocinergic effects on social-emotional functions in socially anxious individuals

社交焦虑的最显著特征是对社会威胁信息的偏颇处理、对自己的普遍负面表征、安全行为和增强的生理唤醒。社交焦虑的个体表现出对无条件社会刺激的恐惧条件作用增强，避免眼神接触和社会互动。虽然增强的恐惧条件作用对社交焦虑的发展至关重要，但回避和安全行为对社交焦虑的维持和泛化至关重要。神经肽催产素影响着社交焦虑的人种学和维持的心理和生物学关键机制。例如，鼻内注射催产素，可以降低健康男性对社交厌恶刺激的杏仁核反应性，并增强对积极面部表情的注意力集中。在一项功能性磁共振成像研究中，我们的目标是研究催产素对社交学习过程以及对社交焦虑男性和女性接近和回避行为的行为和神经功能的影响。这项研究首次系统地研究了鼻腔给药催产素对社会情绪功能影响的性别差异。

A biased processing of socially threatening information, a generally negative representation of the own person, security behaviors, and an enhanced physiological arousal are the most prominent characteristics of social anxiety. Social anxious individuals show enhanced fear conditioning of unconditioned social stimuli, avoid eye contact and social interactions. While enhanced fear conditioning is critical for the development of social anxiety, avoidance and security behaviors are critical for its maintenance and generalization.The neuropeptide oxytocin influences psychological and biological key mechanisms of the ethiology and maintenance of social anxiety. Intranasally administered oxytocin, for instance, reduces the amygdalar reactivity for socially aversive stimuli in healthy men and enhances the attentional focus for positive facial expressions. First results indicate similar oxytocinergic effects in socially anxious individuals.In a functional magnetic resonance imaging study, we aim to investigate behavioral and neurofunctional effects of oxytocin on processes of social learning as well as on approach and avoidance behavior in socially anxious men and women. The study allows a systematic investigation of gender specific differences in the effects of intranasally administered oxytocin on social-emotional functions for the first time.