Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 30, 2025
11:13
The Social Dimension of Stress: Experimental Manipulations of Social Support and Social Identity in the Trier Social Stress Test
Published on: November 19, 2015
13.8K
Hippocampus links perceived social support with self-esteem.
Huanhua Lu1, Xueting Li2, Yinan Wang3
1School of Marxism, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing, China.
Social Neuroscience
|May 18, 2023
Summary
Perceived social support boosts self-esteem by influencing hippocampal gray matter volume. This study reveals the hippocampus
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Self-esteem is a vital psychological resource.
- Perceived social support significantly influences self-esteem.
- The neural mechanisms linking social support and self-esteem are not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neuroanatomical basis connecting perceived social support and self-esteem.
- To explore the role of the hippocampus and amygdala in this relationship.
- To provide a cognitive neuroscience perspective on how social support impacts self-esteem.
Main Methods:
- Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) was employed.
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measured gray matter volume in the hippocampus and amygdala.
- 243 healthy young adults completed the Social Provisions Scale and Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale.
Main Results:
- A positive correlation was found between perceived social support and self-esteem.
- Hippocampal gray matter volume mediated the relationship between perceived social support and self-esteem.
- Amygdala gray matter volume did not show a significant mediating effect.
Conclusions:
- The hippocampus plays a key role in linking perceived social support with self-esteem.
- This finding offers a novel neurobiological explanation for the impact of social support on self-esteem.
- The study highlights the importance of the hippocampus in psychological well-being.
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