Social Environment Impacts the Reward Pathway

Just as food gives us a jolt of pleasure by firing up the brain's reward pathway, so do our social interactions and environmental circumstances. If you have a great job, pleasant relationships, and are respected by your co-workers, you're going to feel pretty good. On the other hand, if you're bored with your job, have troubled relationships, and aren't respected by your co-workers, your reward pathway isn't getting much stimulation.

Individuals who don't receive enough natural rewards from their social environments are more likely to stimulate their neglected reward pathways with drugs.

References

References

Morgan, D. et al (2002). Social dominance in monkeys: dopamine D2 receptors and cocaine self-administration. Nature Neuroscience 5, 169-174. doi: 10.1038/nn798

PET scan images courtesy Michael A. Nader, Ph.D., Wake Forest University School of Medicine


APA format:

Genetic Science Learning Center. (2013, August 30) Social Environment Impacts the Reward Pathway. Retrieved March 24, 2024, from https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/social

CSE format:

Social Environment Impacts the Reward Pathway [Internet]. Salt Lake City (UT): Genetic Science Learning Center; 2013 [cited 2024 Mar 24] Available from https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/social

Chicago format:

Genetic Science Learning Center. "Social Environment Impacts the Reward Pathway." Learn.Genetics. August 30, 2013. Accessed March 24, 2024. https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/social.