The Science of Love, Desire and Attachment

About this video

Huberman discusses the psychology and biology of desire, love and attachment, covering mate seeking, short and long-term relationships, ending relationships and infidelity without encouraging or discouraging particular behaviours. He argues that childhood attachment styles influence adult romantic attachment because the same neural circuits underlying infant-caregiver attachment are repurposed for adult relationships, while emphasising those circuits remain plastic. Huberman covers hormones and neurochemicals including dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin, and studies in which men rated women’s odours most attractive when clothing was worn in the pre-ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle, with a mirror pattern for women rating men’s odours. He describes empathy as autonomic matching, coordinated through the prefrontal cortex and the insula, which splits attention between internal sensations and the other person’s state during the coordinated dance of dating and physical intimacy.

Key takeaways

• Huberman argues childhood attachment circuits are repurposed for adult romantic attachment.
• Huberman says attachment circuits remain plastic and can change with thought, feeling and behaviour.
• Huberman describes empathy as autonomic matching involving the prefrontal cortex and insula.
• Huberman reviews menstrual-cycle studies of how odour attractiveness ratings shift.
• Huberman covers dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin as regulators of desire, love and attachment.

Episode details: published February 14, 2022 · 2.9M views · 2:35:12 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. The science and protocols described are Andrew Huberman’s, presented for education — not medical advice. Consult a qualified professional before changing your own health practices.

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