Hydrocortisone reduces altruistic punishment in healthy men.
Psychoneuroendocrinology
; 165: 107027, 2024 Jul.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38537418
ABSTRACT
Psychosocial stress modulates social cognition and behavior in humans. One potentially mediating factor is cortisol as part of the human endocrine stress response. With a double-blind, placebo-controlled between-subject study design, we tested possible dose-dependent effects of hydrocortisone (0â¯mg, 5â¯mg and 20â¯mg) in 85 healthy males. During a socio-economic decision-making task we measured trust, trustworthiness, sharing, punishment, and non-social risk behavior. Social value orientation (SVO) was also assessed. We observed significantly lower levels of punishment after hydrocortisone, especially in the 20â¯mg group. Drug-induced salivary cortisol correlated negatively with punishment behavior. None of the other facets of social behavior or the SVO were affected by hydrocortisone. Our results suggest that hydrocortisone reduces the propensity to punish unfair behavior. Future studies are needed to further disentangle the role played by various psychobiological mechanisms within the stress response as well as their complex interplay on social behavior and cognition.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Castigo
/
Saliva
/
Hidrocortisona
/
Toma de Decisiones
/
Altruismo
Límite:
Adult
/
Humans
/
Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Psychoneuroendocrinology
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
Pais de publicación:
Reino Unido