We have been conducting a series of experimental studies examining the effect of intranasal oxytocin on social cognition (e.g., emotion perception, attentional biases to social threat, interpretive biases) in anxious clinical populations. Oxytocin is a neuropeptide that is produced in specialized cells of the hypothalamus and through dendritic and synaptic release mechanisms exerts diverse central nervous system effects on social cognition and behavior. Image from Dölen, 2015, Journal of Neuroendocrinology.

 

Social Safety Learning and the Brain Oxytocin System in Social Anxiety Disorder

We are investigating the effects of vicarious extinction learning in individuals with social anxiety disorder, and whether intranasal oxytocin potentiates this effect. Despite the role of socially-acquired fear in theories of anxiety, no studies have examined whether vicarious extinction learning, also known as social safety learning (i.e., learning safety through the safety experience of another individual), can be leveraged in treatment for social anxiety disorder, which is one of the most prevalent types of anxiety in the U.S. and globally. We propose that oxytocin may have therapeutic promise for enhancing vicarious fear extinction in individuals with social anxiety disorder. In this study, we are examining: (1) the effects of vicarious extinction learning in individuals with social anxiety disorder, compared to healthy controls, and (2) the brain mechanisms underlying oxytocin’s effect on vicarious extinction learning, relative to placebo. A total of 50 patients with social anxiety disorder and 50 healthy control participants will perform a vicarious extinction task developed by our collaborators (Golkar et al., 2016) that involves three phases: (i) a standard social fear acquisition procedure, followed by (ii) a vicarious extinction and (iii) fear reinstatement test procedure, while being scanned during fMRI. We will also measure skin conductance responses as an index of learning in each phase. Results will determine whether vicarious extinction learning improves fear regulation in social anxiety disorder. Our ultimate goal is to advance novel therapeutic strategies for patients with anxiety disorders by leveraging pharmacology to target social learning processes that can be translated to the clinic. This work is being sponsored by the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation and the Royalty Research Fund.

 

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