| Submit your comments on this article |
| Science |
| Make Love AND War |
| 2010-06-12 |
| I guess an oxytocin deficiency is NOT responsible for radical Islam's failures at peace and love. Oxytocin has received much attention for boosting social bonding and cooperation, but it also appears to trigger defensive aggression against outsiders who might threaten an individual's social group, psychologists say. That indicates the hormone has a much more complex role in social dynamics than just encouraging humans to make love and not war. "Our study shows that oxytocin not only plays a role in modulating cooperation and benevolence, but also in driving aggression," said Carsten De Dreu, a social psychologist at the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. In other words, giving oxytocin to everyone in the world won't necessarily usher in a new era of peace and prosperity. It might even spur more paranoia and conflict between different groups or nations. "Giving soldiers oxytocin might make them more cooperative towards their comrades, even willing to self-sacrifice," De Dreu said. "But it should [also] make them more likely to launch a preemptive strike against the competing army, with conflict-escalation being the most likely consequence." |
| Posted by:Glenmore |
| #2 Oxytocin given to induce intense labor pains also tends to trigger aggression toward anyone in the room! |
| Posted by: Lumpy Elmoluck5091 2010-06-12 12:56 |
| #1 So the lesson is Oxytocin bad, Oxycontin good. I knew a woman who had severe side effects from Oxycontin, BTW. It started with intense and irrational (to her) paranoia, in which she was extremely afraid of "something". Then she started to have profound bawling and crying, while saying "I have no idea why I an crying!" And it is not pleasant to have a severe weeping jag while in the dentists waiting room, which tattered about everybody's nerves. She decided to hold off on getting her teeth cleaned for a few days. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2010-06-12 11:37 |