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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2007 Mar 15;61(6):731-3.
doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2006.07.015. Epub 2006 Nov 29.

Oxytocin improves "mind-reading" in humans

Gregor Domes  1 , Markus Heinrichs, Andre Michel, Christoph Berger, Sabine C Herpertz
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Oxytocin improves "mind-reading" in humans

Gregor Domes et al. Biol Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Background: The ability to "read the mind" of other individuals, that is, to infer their mental state by interpreting subtle social cues, is indispensable in human social interaction. The neuropeptide oxytocin plays a central role in social approach behavior in nonhuman mammals.

Methods: In a double-blind, placebo-controlled, within-subject design, 30 healthy male volunteers were tested for their ability to infer the affective mental state of others using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) after intranasal administration of 24 IU oxytocin.

Results: Oxytocin improved performance on the RMET compared with placebo. This effect was pronounced for difficult compared with easy items.

Conclusions: Our data suggest that oxytocin improves the ability to infer the mental state of others from social cues of the eye region. Oxytocin might play a role in the pathogenesis of autism spectrum disorder, which is characterized by severe social impairment.

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