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Study · Randomized controlled trial · 2017

4 results

Oxytocin promotes altruistic punishment.

Aydogan G, Furtner NC, Kern B, Jobst A, Müller N, Kocher MG

Social cognitive and affective neuroscience1 Nov 2017Cited by 20 (Europe PMC)

PMID28981891 (opens in a new tab)PMCIDPMC5714236 (opens in a new tab)DOI10.1093/scan/nsx101 (opens in a new tab)PepBankPUB-28981891
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Summary

The text of this summary is not shown here, because the article license does not allow reuse. Read it at the source (opens in a new tab)

Text rights: CC BY-NC. Results still quote short attributed sentences.

Results from this study4

4 results from studies that gave the peptide. 4 results from people.

  1. 01HumanRandomized controlled trialEfficacy outcome

    In participants in a social dilemma, oxytocin amplified self-reported negative emotions such as anger towards free-riders, versus placebo.

    In plain wordsIn people in a social dilemma game, oxytocin increased self-reported anger towards free-riders, compared with placebo.

    Peptide
    Oxytocin
    Outcome
    IncreaseAnger towards free-riders (self-reported)
    Study

    n: not reported in source

    Comparator
    Placebo
    Outcome group
    Social behavior and cognition · Nervous system and cognition
    Studied dose
    Dose not stated · intranasalAs given in this study (human).

    Source sentences

    Summary
    participants treated with oxytocin exhibited an amplification of self-reported negative social emotions such as anger towards free-riders
    1 context sentence
    Summary · context
    Here, we provide evidence that intranasal applied oxytocin, an important hormone for modulating social behavior, enhances the inclination to sanction free-riders in a social dilemma situation.
  2. 02HumanRandomized controlled trialEfficacy outcome

    In participants in a social dilemma, oxytocin increased the magnitude of punishment of free-riders compared with placebo.

    In plain wordsIn people in a social dilemma game, oxytocin led to harsher punishment of free-riders than placebo.

    Peptide
    Oxytocin
    Outcome
    IncreaseMagnitude of punishment of free-riders
    Study

    n: not reported in source

    Comparator
    Placebo
    Outcome group
    Social behavior and cognition · Nervous system and cognition
    Studied dose
    Dose not stated · intranasalAs given in this study (human).

    Source sentences

    Summary
    Contrary to the notion of oxytocin being a pro-social hormone, we found that participants treated with oxytocin exhibited an amplification of self-reported negative social emotions such as anger towards free-riders, ultimately resulting in higher magnitude and frequency of punishment of free-riders compared to placebo.
    1 context sentence
    Summary · context
    Here, we provide evidence that intranasal applied oxytocin, an important hormone for modulating social behavior, enhances the inclination to sanction free-riders in a social dilemma situation.
  3. 03HumanRandomized controlled trialEfficacy outcome

    In participants in a social dilemma, oxytocin increased the frequency of punishment of free-riders compared with placebo.

    In plain wordsIn people in a social dilemma game, oxytocin led to more frequent punishment of free-riders than placebo.

    Peptide
    Oxytocin
    Outcome
    IncreaseFrequency of punishment of free-riders
    Study

    n: not reported in source

    Comparator
    Placebo
    Outcome group
    Social behavior and cognition · Nervous system and cognition
    Studied dose
    Dose not stated · intranasalAs given in this study (human).

    Source sentences

    Summary
    Contrary to the notion of oxytocin being a pro-social hormone, we found that participants treated with oxytocin exhibited an amplification of self-reported negative social emotions such as anger towards free-riders, ultimately resulting in higher magnitude and frequency of punishment of free-riders compared to placebo.
    1 context sentence
    Summary · context
    Here, we provide evidence that intranasal applied oxytocin, an important hormone for modulating social behavior, enhances the inclination to sanction free-riders in a social dilemma situation.
  4. 04HumanRandomized controlled trialEfficacy outcome

    Initial evidence suggested that oxytocin made cooperation preferable, even for the most selfish players, when punishment was available.

    In plain wordsEarly evidence suggested that with oxytocin, even the most selfish players preferred to cooperate when punishment was possible.

    Peptide
    Oxytocin
    Outcome
    IncreaseCooperation when punishment was available
    Study

    n: not reported in source

    Comparator
    Placebo
    Outcome group
    Social behavior and cognition · Nervous system and cognition
    Studied dose
    Dose not stated · intranasalAs given in this study (human).

    Source sentences

    Summary
    Furthermore, we found initial evidence that oxytocin contributes to the positive effects of a punishment institution by rendering cooperation preferable in the oxytocin condition for even the most selfish players when punishment was available.
    1 context sentence
    Summary · context
    Here, we provide evidence that intranasal applied oxytocin, an important hormone for modulating social behavior, enhances the inclination to sanction free-riders in a social dilemma situation.

AI wrote and checked these results. AI can make mistakes, so check important results against the source.

Version history

PepBank keeps every version of the data on this study. Status changes from Retraction Watch, Europe PMC and Crossref are listed with their source.

  1. Version 2Current

    11 Oct 2026, 01:30 UTC

    Study results updated

  2. Version 1

    9 Oct 2026, 02:49 UTC

    First added · source update from Europe PMC

Subjects

Terms as the source lists them.

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