fisher, h et al 2005. romantic love: an fmri study of a neural mechanism for mate choice

FISHER, H ET AL 2005. ROMANTIC LOVE: AN FMRI STUDY OF A NEURAL MECHANISM FOR MATE CHOICE.

Background:• Through research conducted on mammalian and

avian species and mate choices, data suggests that the attraction system is associated with the dopamine reward system. Proposed that intense romantic love has that kind effect.


Aim:• To study courtship attraction in humans by looking at

early stages of intense romantic love. • Regarded as universal in humans.• Specific features are associated with neural activity

e.g. emotions and behaviours. These can be easily observed and quantified in humans.


Theory:• Neurotransmitter dopamine plays a major role in

emotional arousal (also in memory, learning, experiencing pleasure or pain).

• It has an excitatory effect.• This can be stimulated by the opposite sex, through

romantic love.• The presentation of a rewarding/positive stimuli causes

intense nerve impulses to the brain – activates dopamine cells.


Hypothesis:• Romantic love (RL) involves dopaminergic pathways

that mediate reward.• Romantic love (RL) involves neural pathways with

goal directed behaviour and is a state that leads to a range of emotions.


Participants and sampling:• 10 women and 7 men.• Snowball sampling – flyers seeking individual who

were currently intensively in love.• Range age 18 to 26.• Mean = 20,6 and median = 21• Reported duration for being in love.• Was 1 to 17 months, mean = 7,4 and median = 7


Design:• Experimental• Two conditions• IV the photo of the beloved• DV the amount of activation of the dopamine cells.• IV photo of the acquaintance• DV the amount of activation of the dopamine cells.


Procedure:• Each participant was orally interviewed in a semi-

structured format to establish the duration, intensity and range of the subjects feelings.

• Passionate love scale (PLS) a 9 point Likert scale self-report questionnaire which measure several traits commonly associated with RL.

• First condition, photograph of the beloved shown for 30 seconds.

• Following 40 seconds a count back distraction task.• Second condition, photograph of a neutral acquaintance,

shown for 30 seconds.• Following 40 seconds a count back distraction task.• This was repeated six times.• Prescanning instructions were to think about a

nonsexual, euphoric rxperience with the beloved.


Results:• There was group activation regions detected as

individuals looked at an image of their beloved compared to an image of an acquaintance.

• Right VTA (Ventral Tegmental Area) was activated (the brains reward system) – a localised region of dopamine cells.

• Right caudate nucleus was activated which plays a role in motivation.

• Evidence from the human fMRI study support the hypothesis that the reward regions using the neurotransmitters dopamine are activated during feelings of RL.


Implications:• RL may be a primary motivation system – a

fundamental human mating drive. Drives are needed for survival and are focused on specific rewards. Dopamine play an important role.

• Research conducted by Bartels et al 2005 – less intense love showed same results and same areas but even other regions. Suggesting several other neural mechanisms in mate choice is dynamic.

• Similarities with nonhuman attraction patterns. For example hightened energy, focused attention, obsessive following, sleeplessness, loss of appetite. These are traits associated with human early stage in intense romantic love. Evolutionary patterns.


Questions:• fMRI strenghts and limitations?• Evolutionary theory? It evolved as a mechanism to enable

individual to respondto sexually selected courtship traits and motivate individuals to make a mate choice. Are we an offer for our drives in a chemical manner?

• Localisation of function?• Ethics – what would be the effect if a new romantic love

drug were produced? • Method – sampling, control group.• Does this research explain why or why not some people

never experience romantic love?• Biological reductionism?

BUUNK A. P & SOLANO A. C. 2010. CONFLICTING PREFERENCES OF PARENTS AND OFFSPRING OVER CRITERIA FOR A MATE: A STUDY IN ARGENTINA.

Background:• Do we choose a mate freely or do there exist

environmental influences affecting our mate choice?• Evolutionary psychology has been an alternative for a

long time to answer the question but as said before are there something in the environment that plays a key role?

• In all cultures the parents have exerted strong influence on the mate choice.

• In a lot of cultures the marriages are arrenged by the parents.


Aim:• Are there an alternative explenation to the

evolutionary explenation.• Does environment (parents) affect in mate choice.• Argentina is a westernaized culture in South America

with orientation toward US and Europe which makes the finding easily corresponded to those countries. But without correlations.


Theory• Children have an interest that parents spend as much

investments in the mating choice for the sake of future e.g. children, to work well in the in-group etz.

• Fathers may seek to establish alliances with the son- or daughter in law depending on that persons social status.


Hypothesis/questions:• Is the age difference something that can contribute to

conflicts between parents-offspring?• If individuals in a serious relationship have faced the

conflicts between parents-offspring more in comparison to individuals where the mating process have not yet seriously begun?

• Individuals oriented toward a higher social level: are they more oriented to their peer rather than to the parents?

• Sex differences between male and female conflict relation toward the parents?


Method:• Participants: 119 women and 123 men. Mean age =

25,57, minimum = 18 years, maximum = 41 years.• Mostly students from social sciences, administration,

design and law. The participants were randomly selected at Palermo University in Buenos Aires.

• Questionnaire


Results:• Unacceptability of mate characteristic to children

versus parents. Offspring: lacking sense of humor, lacking creativity, having a bad smell and being fat.Parents: being divorced, having different religious belief, different ethnic background, and being from a lower social class. • Parent offspring conflictsThe older the men was the more conflicts the men experienced with their parents. Those who were married reported more conflicts over mate characteristic then the unmarried respondents. Women in favour of parental control over mate choice…


Results…continue:Perceived more discrepancies between their own preferences and their parents.Social comparison orientation had an impact for conflict in men (not women) as a ground for conflict.


Discussion:• Results show that offspring and parents have different

opinions on the mate characteristic. The genetic factors are more correlated with the offspring such as lack of humor and traits correlated with the investment in the in-group such as the same religious belief (parents) were grounds for conflict.

• Older respondents perceived more conflicts than younger respondents. Why do older people arguing more with their parents than younger? Should’t it be the opposite.

• The more the women were in favour of parental control they experienced more conflicts than the men did. The answer might lie in the genetic argument that the family is more concerned over the daugther’s mate choice than the son’s mate choice. They are reproductive valuable.


Discussion:• The question the study can contribute with is that if

the choices we make might as well be influenced by the environment. In this study if the mate choice might be influenced by our parents from the start?


Limitations:• The study was based on how the parents might

answer.• The study did not concentrate on traits equal

imortant to both children and parents.• Small range of age• The difference of a short-term partner and a long-

term partner is not clear in this study.


Questions:• Which aspect might have the greatest influence in

the mate-choice: the biological or the environmental (social)?

• Have you in your personal life being trapped in this dilemma?

• What about the research?

HAEFFEL G. 2008. NATURE AND NURTURE ARE BOTH TO BLAME FOR DEPRESSION.

Background/introduction:• Gerald Haeffel at the University of Notre Dame.

Investigated depression while taking both genes and environment into consideration.


Hypothesis/question:• genes associated with dopamine interacted with

maternal parenting style to predict episodes of depression.


Method:• Haeffel studied 177 male adolescents from a Russian

juvenile detention facility. They were given a depression assessment, a questionnaire designed to determine their mothers’ parenting style, and tested for the specific dopamine transporter gene previously implicated in depression.

• Questionnaires and interviews.


Results:• The results showed that neither cruel mothering

patterns, nor the dopamine transporter gene alone predicted depression. A combination of both, however, resulted in a higher risk for depression and suicidal tendencies.


Discussion:• This study is groundbreaking because it is the first to

support the theory of a dopamine transporter gene in depression.

• It also represents a modern understanding of the interaction of nature and nurture.

• As scientists like Haeffel begin to more frequently use a combination of genetic and environmental experimental designs, we will inevitably gain a much deeper, and more accurate, understanding of human behavior.


Nature/nurture debate:• The outside environment creates a stimulus and

response relationship that defines who we are?• Our mental well-being is dependent on the brain's

neurons and how they connect and interact with other neurons, but it takes a push from the outside environment to start the process?

• Can we freely choose important things like mates in an absolutely freedom like state?

PINE ET AL. 2010. DOPAMINE, TIME, AND IMPULSIVITY IN HUMANS.

Background:• Brain processes that affect our will power and us act

impulsively.• Dopamine disordered neurotransmission is involved

in behavioural disorders such as ADHD, gambling and hyperactivity etz.

• Why can some wait six months to buy the new Iphone while others can’t.

• What is it with the rewardsystem that changes our behaviour?

• Decision-making and behavioral change.


Aim/Question:• Whereas existing theories of dopamine function

highlight mechanisms based on aberrant (avvikande) reward learning or behavioral disinhibition, they do not offer an adequate account of the pathological hypersensitivity to temporal delay that forms a crucial behavioral phenotype seen in these disorders.


Method:• Experimental study 14 healthy volunteers under two

conditions.• Given a small dose of L-dopa and one with placebo.• Participants were asked to make a number of choices:E.g. £15 smaller but zooner £ 57 larger but later• DV = the amount of money (the choice)• IV = the amount of dopamine.


Results:• The researchers found that the subject were more

likely to act impulsively, choosing the smaller but zooner reward. When the level of dopamine were boosted.

• The sooner option increased by a third although each participant varied on this measure.


Discussion:• the finding may explain why we tend to behave more

impulsively when influenced by external cues.• Sensory inputs like sights, sound, smell and

anticipation of rewards, momentarily boost dopamine levels in our brains.

• But it also explains why disorders whit an increased level of dopamine can lead to extremely impulsive behaviours.

• They also noticed an increased activity within the amygdala when volunteers made choices.

fisher, h et al 2005. romantic love: an fmri study of a neural mechanism for mate choice

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