Effects of personality on the opioidergic modulation of the emotion warmth‐liking

Abstract

Neurobiological research suggests there are discrete emotion systems, which are based on separate neural pathways with specific neurotransmitters (i.e., oxytocin, opioids). So far, autonomic regulation patterns of different positive emotions could not be unambiguously characterized. Warmth-liking, as an emotion system, is activated during interpersonal interactions and close relationships. We postulated that warmth-liking has a specific somatovisceral signature, which is, however, qualified by individual differences in personality and attachment style. Individual differences in personality and attachment style are postulated to contribute to μ-opiate functioning. Forty-eight females in a heterosexual relationship, selected on the basis of attachment reports, took part in a virtual ball-tossing game with their partners and two confederates. Participants received either the competitive μ-opioid antagonist naltrexone (25 mg) or a placebo in a randomized double-blind design. Social exclusion during the game reduced feelings of warmth, increased feelings of anger, and increased blood pressure and left-ventricular contractibility, whereas social inclusion was characterized by physiological quiescence. Further analyses revealed differential effects in self-reported feelings as well as in cardiovascular parameters as a function of attachment style. Secure attachment predicted higher levels of warmth-liking, physiological quiescence, and less negative feelings even during social exclusion. These findings can be interpreted as evidence for psychophysiological resilience. Furthermore, naltrexone reduced feelings of warmth and increased vasoconstriction during social inclusion, especially for securely bonded participants. These findings are remarkable hints for an opioidergic modulation of the interaction between emotion and personality.

Effects of positive emotion, extraversion, and dopamine on cognitive stability‐flexibility and frontal EEG asymmetry

“…Ninety‐one female volunteers (mean age = 22.6, SD = 2.5, range 18 to 31 years) participated in the present experimental session as part of a larger research project on neural foundations of personality and emotion (for further results from this project, see C. Burgdorf, Rinn, & Stemmler, ; Mueller, Burgdorf, Chavanon, Schweiger, Hennig, et al, ; Mueller, Burgdorf, Chavanon, Schweiger, Wacker, & Stemmler, ; Schweiger et al, ). After recruitment on campus, exclusion criteria (self‐reported physical impairment, pregnancy, habitual smoking, or drug or alcohol abuse, and acute or lifetime psychiatric disorder as assessed with a standardized clinical interview; Margraf, ) and inclusion criteria (body mass index [BMI] ≥ 17.5, blood pressure > 90/50, and right‐handedness) were examined in a pretest session.…”

“…Participants' mean weight was 62.4 kg ( SD = 9.8 kg; mean BMI: 22.2). At least 3 months earlier, participants of the present study had also participated in another experimental session of the same project focusing on other experimental paradigms and involving a challenge of the opioid rather than the dopamine system (C. Burgdorf et al, ; Schweiger et al, ).…”

Selective suppression of rapid eye movement sleep increases next-day negative affect and amygdala responses to social exclusion

“…The grey arrows indicate onsets of REM sleep and SWS upon which the respective groups were awakened. After waking up on the second morning, all subjects performed two sessions of the Cyberball game while inside the fMRI scanner 91 . The game included a total of eight blocks, with four inclusion (INC) and four exclusion (EXC) blocks.…”

“…All three players, including the participant, were represented by avatars, i.e. green, 3D-animated stick-figures standing in a triangle on a lawn (for a detailed description of the animation see 91 ). Participants were able to control the avatar on the bottom edge of the screen, while the other two avatars were placed on the left and right of the horizontal midline of the screen.…”

Opioids and Social Connection

“…In recent years, a handful of new studies have explored opioids and negative social experiences, though support for the theory has been mixed (e.g., Burgdorf, Rinn, & Stemmler, 2016).…”