Vasopressin and pair bonding

[mattbell]

- Apparently vasopressin (a polypeptide) is released during sex and helps contribute to attachment in pair bonding.
- Some people have fewer receptors for vasopressin, and this affects their ability to form attachments.
- One genetic determinant for vasopressin receptors has been found... apparently people with two copies of this gene have far fewer vasopressin receptors and are more likely to have marital problems because they do not form strong attachment to their spouses.
- So there's a possibility that in the near-future, people who have trouble staying in marriages could take some kind of pill to help them to pair-bond more effectively with their spouses.

I can imagine someone saying "I used to date a string of abusive jerks.  Now I can medicate them!"

This raises some very interesting possibilities for personal development in general.  Most procrastinators I know would happily take a pill to help them stop procrastinating, but some people might resent giving up something they consider a part of their identity or changing in a way that would alienate them from their existing peer group.

Comments

[integreillumine.livejournal.com]

Mm, so, vasopressin and ocytocin are similar, but not the same (by 2 amino acids). Vasopressin is more strongly associated with bonding for males, but is also associated with increased aggression, especially towards other males (unlike ocytocin, which is the more 'female' chemical of the two). If you look at what it chemically/behaviorally does, it's more of a fighting/acting drug; AVP regulates water (keeps you from peeing), induces vasoconstriction. So, that jealous-abusive jerk may already be pretty high in it.

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

Good point regarding the other effects of vasopressin. I was thinking that the people with the genetic defect in vasopressin receptors would be more likely to be abusive jerks because they are not building up strong positive associations to their partner and thus don't care about them.

[vvvexation.livejournal.com]

Often, abusers are the ones who are way too attached to their partners. Jealousy and possessiveness are big factors in a lot of abusive relationships.

[easwaran.livejournal.com]

Of course, someone who dates a string of abusive jerks may be attracted to some personality feature that is correlated with the abusive-jerk-ness. It's possible that medicating that away would also medicate away the features that made them attractive.

If there were a pill that just got rid of procrastination with no other effects, I'd certainly take it. But conceptually, I'm not even sure this is possible. Could you take away procrastination without affecting the way one makes use of one's free time, or the way one organizes one's social life? Maybe, but also maybe not. Of course, maybe it would be an improvement on all fronts, but it might well not be.

Also is vasopresin just released indiscriminately into the bloodstream or is it produced and released in certain specific organs and brain regions? If the latter, then a pill is likely farther off.

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

My theory on the abusive jerk thing (which could be totally wrong) is that women who go for the abusive jerks are initially attracted to the "bad boy" persona, but then hope the guy will change and settle down. They're hoping for the best of both worlds... a bad boy who's so hopelessly in love that he turns into a "tamed" husband. I've seen this plot enacted numerous times in various chick flicks.

I agree with you that there will always be side effects, but I think we can do much better than what's available now. There are drugs that get rid of procrastination now (eg ritalin) but they have detrimental side effects on creativity and the ability to construct meaningful goal hierarchies.

Based on the wikipedia info for vasopressin, it appears that it has numerous functions and different people may have different distributions of vasopressin receptors. So as you point out, an effective pill ay be rather difficult.

[steuard.livejournal.com]

Ah, but once the husband is "tamed", does the woman begin to lose interest? (That bit wouldn't make it into the chick flicks even if it were typically true...) Maybe the timing of the relationship has to be just right, too: exactly at that point where the woman is about to change strategies and settle down herself.

[vvvexation.livejournal.com]

The question is, do people who don't form strong attachments to their partners have any interest in changing that? Certainly their partners couldn't force them onto meds (or if they could, it'd be deeply creepy), so it'd be up to them...but that's kind of a bootstrappy scenario: take this pill to make me want something I currently don't want? Why would I do that?

[aaangyl.livejournal.com]

http://www.miller-mccune.com/health/benefits-of-the-daddy-brain-1097

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

That was interesting. I find the feeling of being in charge of *anything* makes me smarter, but I'm not surprised to hear there are biological pathways for cognitive benefits when around your own children.