Serotonin Modulates Behavioral Reactions to Unfairness

doi:10.1126/science.1155577

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Originally published in Science Express on 5 June 2008
Science 27 June 2008:
Vol. 320. no. 5884, p. 1739
DOI: 10.1126/science.1155577

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Serotonin Modulates Behavioral Reactions to Unfairness

Molly J. Crockett,¹^,2^* Luke Clark,¹^,2 Golnaz Tabibnia,³ Matthew D. Lieberman,³ Trevor W. Robbins¹^,2

Serotonin (5-HT) has long been implicated in social behaviorand impulsivity, but the mechanisms through which it modulatesself-control remain unclear. We observed the effects of manipulating5-HT function on behavior in the ultimatum game, where playersmust decide whether to accept or reject fair or unfair monetaryoffers from another player. Participants with depleted 5-HTlevels rejected a greater proportion of unfair offers, but notfair offers, without showing changes in mood, fairness judgment,basic reward processing, or response inhibition. Our resultssuggest that 5-HT plays a critical role in regulating emotionduring social decision-making.

¹ Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK.
² Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK.
³ Department of Psychology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: mc536{at}cam.ac.uk

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