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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 24, 2026

Perceptual and Category Processing of the Uncanny Valley Hypothesis' Dimension of Human Likeness: Some Methodological Issues

Perceptual and Category Processing of the Uncanny Valley Hypothesis' Dimension of Human Likeness: Some Methodological Issues

Published on: June 3, 2013

Exploring wanting and liking during positive human-animal interactions.

Suzanne Truong¹, Oceane Schmitt^1,2, Femke Buisman-Pijlman^3,4

¹Animal Welfare Science Unit, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210, Vienna, Austria.

Psychopharmacology

|January 22, 2026

Summary

Dopamine and opioid systems influence motivation in human-animal interactions (HAIs). High doses of amisulpride and naloxone increased the time it took for pigs to initiate contact, suggesting they modulate "wanting" but not "liking".

Keywords:

Amisulpride Dopamine Naloxone Opioid Receptor antagonist Reward system Social reward Sus scrofa

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Animal Behavior
Pharmacology

Background:

Dopamine and opioids are key neurotransmitters in reward processing, influencing
wanting
and
liking
behaviors.
Their precise roles in social and human-animal interactions (HAIs) are not well understood.
Domesticated animals provide a valuable model for studying these mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the roles of dopamine and opioids in modulating reward-related behaviors during HAIs in pigs.
To determine the optimal dosages for amisulpride (dopamine D2/D3 receptor antagonist) and naloxone (mu-opioid receptor antagonist) in this context.
To differentiate the effects of these neurotransmitters on
wanting
versus
liking
components of social interaction.

Main Methods:

A within-subject design was employed with 30 female pigs.
Amisulpride (oral) and naloxone (intranasal) were administered at three dosage levels.
Behavioral responses during 10-minute interaction sessions with a familiar human were recorded post-administration.

Main Results:

High doses of amisulpride (800 mg) and naloxone (80 mg/ml) significantly increased the latency to initiate contact with the human.
This suggests that both dopamine and opioid systems play a role in the motivation (
wanting
) to engage in social interaction.
Neither drug significantly affected the duration of contact, indicating no significant impact on the
liking
component.

Conclusions:

Amisulpride and naloxone can be used to non-invasively study reward mechanisms in domesticated animals.
The findings provide initial evidence for the safe and effective use of these agents for such research.
Both neurotransmitter systems modulate the motivation, but not necessarily the pleasure, of social interactions.