Week 8 Love, Sex and Chemistry.
Relationship psychologists have long grappled with the question of how romantic love and sexual desire emerge and evolve over the course of intimate relationships (Aron & Aron, 1998). Love can give meaning to a person’s life, but often it can be a mystery. In the world we live in today, almost everything has been reduced to a science of processes and mechanisms. Can we possibly find love and an understanding of our relationships through social science? While there is a consensus that male sexual interest and desire are associated with gonadal hormones, especially testosterone (Berscheid & Regan, 1999) is this all that influences love and passion? Today we will be investigating Fisher’s 3 stages of love study and the chemicals produced, that influence the cognitive process that follow.
Fisher (2006) states that the first stage of love is Lust. It is driven by the sex hormones testosterone and oestrogen present in both men and women. In almost all studies to date, testosterone has been associated with sexual desire or activity, but not sexual arousal (Berscheid & Regan, 2005). At this stage ,chemicals such as androgens, estrogens, progesterone and prolactin play a crucial role in human attraction (Regan, 2008) this is usually stimulated by people who are perceived to be physically attractive. Sexual desire works by motivating proximity seeking, and contact which allows commitment to grow between the couple (Hazan & Zeifman, 1999).
When men are sexually attracted to women, they experience a spike in testosterone levels (Berscheid & Regan, 1999). Attraction is the second stage of love and is primarily influenced by the production of oestrogen and testosterone. However, a number of neurotransmitters are also responsible for the emotions that follow during the stage of attraction. Scientists have given monoamines the most recognition for maintaining strong relationships and general arousal (Regan, 2008). These main neurotransmitters are adrenaline, dopamine and serotonin.
Our body’s natural response to stress is an increment in adrenalin and cortisol levels in our blood stream (Fisher, 2006). The explosion of neurochemicals in our body stimulates the production of adrenaline (by norepinephrine) which triggers the sense of excitement that causes us to feel dizzy, our heart beat faster and makes our palms sweaty. The dopamine produced affects our pleasure and motivation sensors. When we fall in love, the production of dopamine is heavily secreted throughout our body causing a sensation akin to a substance-induced high (Cook, 1981). This may have the same effect as illicit drugs such as cocaine. As dopamine rewards our pleasure senses, this encourages people to pursue their counterpart (Fisher, 2006). As the addiction to the chemical grows stronger, our attraction becomes greater. According to (Marazziti, Akiskal, Rossi & Cassano, 1999), couples in newly formed relationships share similar levels of serotonin to patients with low levels of Obsessive compulsive disorder. Unlike the production of dopamine and adrenaline, the production of serotonin is decreased when we are in love (Regan, 2008).
The final stage of love is attachment. The bond developed at this stage of love maintains the relationship in order for the couple to reproduce and raise their children. The chemicals responsible for preserving this relationship are Oxytocin and Vasopressin. Experiments were conducted on animals to signify the importance of these chemical in human relationships. In studies made by (Insel, Winslow, Wang & Young, 1998) suggest that oxytocin and vasopressin have a role to playing complex social behaviours, including parental care, sex behaviour, and aggression.
Oxytocin is a neuron that deepens feelings of attachment and makes couples feel much closer to one another. It also helps to cement the strong bond of trust between mom and baby when it is released during childbirth. In similar studies made by (Kéri & Benedek, 2009), oxytocin was proven to improve biological motion and encourage maternity in animals.
Vasopressin is another essential hormone in the long-term commitment of love. When exposed to the hormone, scientists found that rats would indulge in far more sex than is strictly necessary for the purposes of reproduction. But when Vasopressin, was suppressed the bond with their partner deteriorated immediately as they lost their devotion and failed to protect their partner from new suitors (Bujis, 1978).
Could it be that love is simply the effects of chemicals released through the course of a relationship? Although scientific evidence suggests that chemicals do have a strong influence on human relationships can it possibly encompass the complexities of human behaviour? Unlike animals, the lives of people are more complex as we engage in commerce and other faculties of human social interaction which poses as obstacles for love.
References
Aron, A. Aron, E.N. (1998). Love and the expansion of self: understanding attraction and satisfaction. Washington: Hemisphere Pub. Corp.
Berscheid, E. Regan, P.C. (1999). Lust: what we know about human sexual .Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications, c1999.
Berscheid, E. Regan, P. C. (2005).The psychology of interpersonal relationships .Upper Saddle River, New Jersey : Pearson Education, 2005.
Bujis, R.M. ( 1978). Intra- and extrahypothalamic vasopressin and oxytocin pathways in the rat. Cell and Tissue Research, Heidelberg :Springer Berlin
Cook, M. (1981). The bases of human sexual attraction. Sydney: Academic Press.
Diamond, L. M. (2003). What does sexual orientation orient? A biobehavioral model distinguishing romantic love and sexual desire. Psychological Review, 110, 173–192.
Fisher, H. (2006).The New Psychology of Love, 2nd Edition. RJ Sternberg and K Weis (Eds.) New Haven: Yale University Press
Hazan, C. Zeifman, D. (1999). Pair bonds as attachments: Evaluating the evidence. In J. Cassidy & P.R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of Attachment Theory and Research. New York: The Guilford Press.
Insel,T. Winslow, J.Wang, Z. Young, L.J. (1998). Oxytocin, vasopressin, and the neuroendocrine basis of pair bond formation . Department of Psychiatry and Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center, Atlanta: Emory University.
Kéri,S. Benedek, G. (2009). Oxytocin enhances the perception of biological motion in humans.Cognitive, Affective and Behavioral Neuroscience. 9(3) 237-242.
Marazziti, D. Akiskal, H. Rossi, A. Cassano, G. (1999). Alteration of the platelet serotonin transporter in romantic love. Psychological medicine, 239, 741-745.
Regan. P. C (2008). Mating game: a primer on love, sex, and marriage. 2nd Edition. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.
Sobol, B. (2007). Love And Lust. Cosmopolitan. 242(3) 138. Retrieved from Proquest.
Andre, S. Berry, O. Fischer, A. Stepleton, H. Younger, J. (Producers). (2nd August 2009). The science of sex appeal: Mating for life. Podcast retrieved from:
http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/science-of-sex-appeal-mating-for-life.html on September 7th 2009
Testosterone VS. Dopamine
http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/science-of-sex-appeal-testosterone-vs-dopamine.html
Dr Donetella Marazziti on love.
Sections of the chemical processes produced in the brain are hard to articulate simply through text because they were expressed through in depth experiments made by several researchers. I am in the process of finding shorter versions of these experiments (that can be uploaded) to further express what I am talking about when I say that lower levels of serotonin are produced. As I feel that the blog entry seems too “scientific” I would much prefer not to be brief and diffuse any confusion with these experiments. Please be patient as I have to sift through many videos to find a suitable video.
Dr Fisher’s talk has been replaced by Dr Marazziti because it is far more concise. It is also a lot less boring. I will not be removing Dr Fisher from my reference list because I have done my research based on some of her studies. I will also be including another reference for Dr Marazziti soon when I find a reference for this video.
Note: This reference is diffferent from
Marazziti, D. Akiskal, H. Rossi, A. Cassano, G. (1999). Alteration of the platelet serotonin transporter in romantic love. Psychological medicine, 239, 741-745.