The Influence of Drugs on Social Behavior

A special issue of Behavioral Sciences (ISSN 2076-328X). This special issue belongs to the section "Social Psychology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 March 2026 | Viewed by 34

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy Practice, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA
Interests: cannabinoids; social behavior; psychopharmacology; EEG; psychophysics

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Guest Editor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
Interests: psychedelics; cannabinoids; prosocial; fMRI; human pharmacology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Social behavior is fundamental to human well-being, and disruptions in social functioning are core features of many psychiatric conditions. Emerging evidence indicates that pharmacological agents, whether therapeutic, recreational, or experimental, can profoundly influence social cognition, which in turn affects many functions, including affiliation, empathy, trust, engagement, and decision-making, making it a key target for pharmacotherapeutic interventions. Given the growing interest in the impact of drugs on social behavior, this Special Issue will focus on novel evidence exploring these effects from a behavioral and psychiatric perspective. Moreover, this Special Issue will bridge pre-clinical, clinical, and experimental pharmacology studies exploring the role of drugs in enhancing and/or impairing social functioning.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The impact of psychoactive substances on social cognition.
  • Pharmacological interventions for social impairment.
  • Behavioral pharmacology of social bonding, affiliation, and aggression.
  • Drug-induced changes in empathy, theory of mind, aggression, and affiliative behavior in psychiatric conditions.
  • Social context as a moderator of drug effects or similar topics.

Dr. Connor Haggarty
Dr. Hanna Molla
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • social cognition
  • empathy
  • psychoactive drugs
  • psychedelics
  • affiliative behaviors
  • social impairment

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Published Papers

This special issue is now open for submission.
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