Issues & Debate

• • Application
  • Improve social behaviour: oxytocin slightly increased preferred social distance -> oxytocin may not be suitable for treating males with social disorders (autism spectrum) and may actually strengthen social biases
• • Individual: oxytocin deceased preferred interpersonal distance in those with high empathy traits, increased for low empathy
  • Situational: oxytocin levels increase in many situations (socialising, playing with pets) -> preferred interpersonal distance could be affected by environmental factors that increase oxytocin"
• Link to Assumption: People have different preferred interpersonal distance for different types of people -> behaviour is influenced by the presence of others