Oxytocin Linked to Attachment Style
Friday, August 28, 2009 - 23:57
in Psychology & Sociology
One of the cool things about neuroscience is that its validating some theories of psychology and even psychoanalysis. When I wrote The Chemistry of Connection in 2007 and 2008, I made some leaps, tying together psychology and sociology, which are based on observation, with animal studies showing that mothering helps determine the distribution and sensitivity of oxytocin receptors in the brain. For one thing, I tied the oxytocin response -- the release of oxytocin in the brain in response to positive social interactions -- to attachment styles. A new study from Baylor College of Medicine validates this link. read more