Oxytocin helps you feel more extroverted
By Liz Lockhart
Certain social situations such as Christmas parties, first dates and job interviews can be very stressful for many of 
us. Such situations can be very difficult for shy individuals and could almost lead them to wish for a magic potion to help them to feel sociable and confident. Research suggests that the answer could come from a nasal spray.
The Concordia University in Canada has published the finding of this new research in the journal Psychopharmacology. The researchers have found that an intranasal form of oxytocin can improve one’s self-perception in social situations.
Oxytocin is a hormone which is naturally released during social bonding periods and following childbirth and it has recently been investigated to observe the impact it may have on social behaviour.
Senior author Mark Ellenbogen, Canada Research Chair in Developmental Psychopathology at Concordia University says ‘Our study shows oxytocin can change how people see themselves which could in turn make people more sociable. Under the effects of oxytocin, a person can perceive themselves as more extraverted, more open to new ideas and more trusting.’
The study looked at 100 participants. These consisted of both men and women who could not take medication, suffer from a current or past mental disorder, use recreational drugs or smoke cigarettes.
The participants inhaled oxytocin which was delivered from a nasal spray. Ninety minutes later they completed questionnaires on how they felt. They were assessed on neuroticism, openness to new experiences, agreeableness, extraversion and conscientiousness.
‘Participants who self-administered intranasal oxytocin reported higher ratings of extraversion and openness to experiences than those who received a placebo,’ says Christopher Cardoso, first author. ‘Specifically, oxytocin administration amplified personality traits such as warmth, trust, altruism and openness.’
This study follows on from previous experimental research from Concordia which has shown intranasal oxytocin can affect the way in which people perceive their ability to cope with difficult circumstances.
