Background
In nonhuman mammals, oxytocin has a critical role in peer recognition and social approach
behavior. In humans, oxytocin has been found to enhance trust and the ability to interpret
the emotions of others. It has been suggested that oxytocin may enhance facial processing
by increasing focus on the eye region of human faces.
Methods
In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, between-subject design, we tracked
the eye movements of 52 healthy male volunteers who were presented with 24 neutral
human faces after intranasal administration of 24 IU oxytocin or placebo.
Results
Participants given oxytocin showed an increased number of fixations and total gaze
time toward the eye region compared with placebo participants.
Conclusions
Oxytocin increases gaze specifically toward the eye region of human faces. This may
be one mechanism by which oxytocin enhances emotion recognition, interpersonal communication,
and social approach behavior in humans. Findings suggest a possible role for oxytocin
in the treatment of disorders characterized by eye-gaze avoidance and facial processing
deficits.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: September 24, 2007
Accepted:
June 29,
2007
Received in revised form:
June 28,
2007
Received:
May 25,
2007
Identification
Copyright
© 2008 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
