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The dopamine hypothesis of social support
Shih-Hsien Lin1, Po See Chen, Tzung Lieh Yeh
1Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan.
Medical Hypotheses
|August 23, 2011
Summary
Dopamine
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Evolutionary Psychology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Dopamine's role in human evolution and adaptive behaviors is suggested.
- Recent studies link the dopamine system to social support in healthy individuals.
- The precise mechanism underlying this association remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a novel dopamine hypothesis linking dopaminergic activity, cognitive function, and social support.
- To review existing literature supporting the proposed mechanism.
- To highlight the need for further experimental and longitudinal research.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of two supporting lines of evidence.
- Hypothesis formulation based on existing research.
- Identification of future research directions.
Main Results:
- A proposed dopamine hypothesis suggests dopaminergic system activity influences social support through cognitive capacity.
- Two distinct literature streams provide support for the proposed mechanism.
- Further empirical investigation is warranted to validate the hypothesis.
Conclusions:
- The proposed dopamine hypothesis offers a potential mechanism for dopamine's influence on social support.
- This hypothesis may guide future research into the neurobiology of social behavior.
- Findings could inform dopaminergic pharmacotherapy for social deficits.
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