Neural sensitivity to social reward predicts social behavior and satisfaction in adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic

Dziura, Sarah L.; McNaughton, Kathryn; Giacobbe, Elizabeth; Yarger, Heather A.; Hickey, Alexandra; Shariq, Deena; Redcay, Elizabeth

doi:10.31234/osf.io/y9t8g

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 34 publications

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“…For instance, sharing monetary rewards with friends (relative to strangers) has been associated with enhanced VS response (Fareri et al, 2012). Behavioral metrics of satisfaction, excitement, and social behavior across changing social contexts corroborate the change in VS response (Dziura et al, 2022;Fareri et al, 2012). Social information is not processed in isolation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 84%

Social Context and Reward Sensitivity Enhance Corticostriatal Function during Experiences of Shared Rewards

Zaff,

Wyngaarden,

Dennison

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Although prior research has demonstrated enhanced striatal response when sharing rewards with close social connections, less is known about how individual differences affect ventral striatal (VS) activation and connectivity when experiencing rewards within social contexts. Given that self-reported reward sensitivity and level of substance use have been associated with differences in VS activation, we set out to investigate whether these factors would be independently associated with enhancements to neural reward responses within social contexts. In this pre-registered study, participants (N=45) underwent fMRI while playing a card guessing game in which correct or incorrect guesses resulted in monetary gains and losses that were shared evenly with either a close friend, stranger (confederate), or non-human partner. Consistent with our prior work, we found increased VS activation when sharing rewards with a socially close peer as opposed to an out-of-network stranger. As self-reported reward sensitivity increased, the difference in VS response to rewards shared with friends and strangers decreased. We also found enhanced connectivity between the VS and temporoparietal junction when sharing rewards with close friends as opposed to strangers. Finally, exploratory analyses revealed that as reward sensitivity and sub-clinical substance use increase, the difference in VS connectivity with the right fusiform face area increases as a function of social context. These findings demonstrate that responsivity to the context of close friends may be tied to individual reward sensitivity or sub-clinical substance use habits; together these factors may inform predictions of risk for future mental health disorders.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 84%

Social Context and Reward Sensitivity Enhance Corticostriatal Function during Experiences of Shared Rewards

Zaff,

Wyngaarden,

Dennison

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Associations between age, social reward processing and social anxiety symptoms

Kilford¹,

Foulkes²,

Blakemore³

2023

Curr Psychol

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Reward processing undergoes marked changes in adolescence, with social interactions representing a powerful source of reward. Reward processing is also an important factor in the development of social anxiety disorder, a condition that most commonly first appears in adolescence. This study investigated the relationship between age, social reward processing and social anxiety in a cross-sectional sample of female participants (N = 80) aged 13–34. Participants performed two versions of a probabilistic reward anticipation task, in which a speeded response could result in different probabilities of receiving either social or monetary rewarding feedback. Participants also completed self-report assessments of social reward value, trait anxiety and social anxiety symptoms. At high reward probabilities, performance on both reward tasks showed a quadratic effect of age, with the fastest responses at around 22–24 years. A similar quadratic effect was found for subjective liking ratings of both reward stimuli, although these were not associated with performance. Social anxiety was not associated with a subjective liking of the rewards but did predict performance on both tasks at all reward probabilities. Age-related variation in reward processing was not accounted for by age-related variation in social anxiety symptoms, suggesting that, while both social anxiety and age were associated with variation in reward processing, their effects were largely independent. Together, these findings provide evidence that social reward processing continues to develop across adolescence and that individual differences in social anxiety should be considered when considering reward sensitivity during this period.

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Neural sensitivity to social reward predicts social behavior and satisfaction in adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic

Cited by 2 publications

References 34 publications

Social Context and Reward Sensitivity Enhance Corticostriatal Function during Experiences of Shared Rewards

Social Context and Reward Sensitivity Enhance Corticostriatal Function during Experiences of Shared Rewards

Associations between age, social reward processing and social anxiety symptoms

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