Our ‘hormones’, which we think play a major role in the positive and negative events that happen to us throughout our lives, are our body’s internal stabilizers. Neural control centers in the brain influence the body glands to produce and secrete hormones necessary for maintaining vital balance. The body glands respond to imbalances in the body by increasing or decreasing hormone production.
Body glands, in other words hormones, are of particular interest to neurologists and neuromarketers in two aspects.
Since emotions and behaviours are influenced by hormones, people’s moods are constantly in a state of great flux. In light of this reality, neurological studies should be conducted with people if real human behaviour is to be seen in neuromarketing studies. Because even if we only consider hormones, the human sample is very valuable in neurological measurements.
In neuromarketing studies, it is thought that certain hormones are particularly effective in the emotions that occur against verbal or visual stimuli that people encounter. These hormones are Dopamine, Serotonin, Endorphin and Oxytocin. This is because these hormones are responsible for our emotions as well as critical bodily functions. Emotions and hormones are intricately linked.
Dopamine: This hormone plays a role in controlling our mood. Experts state that fifty percent of dopamine is produced in the intestines.
Serotonin: This hormone plays an important role in regulating our mood and is responsible for our feeling of happiness.
Endorphin: The function of this hormone is to relieve pain, reduce the impact of suffering, and provide a sense of well-being when we engage in behaviours that the brain perceives as appropriate. This hormone is linked to the natural reward circuit.
Oxytocin: We associate this hormone with love, passion, sexuality, the need to be valued, the feeling of motherhood. This hormone is associated with a sense of trust and enables people to make positive decisions. The appearance of this hormone makes people more empathetic, generous, benevolent and helpful. According to experiments, when the level of this hormone is increased, people make higher financial donations and become more sharing.
” Hormones were as potent as whiskey and twice as sneaky. – Linda Howard
“I can be a little cranky. I’m full of anxiety and hormones.” – Nicholas Hoult
“Hormones are very powerful things. We are helpless in their wake. – Meg Cabot
“A pure heart and mind can only take you so far, and sooner or later hormones have their say. – Jim Butcher
Reference
Rita Carter, Paul J. Zak, Intranasal Oxytocin: Myths and Delusions, In Biological Psychiatry, Dr. Kıvılcım Kayabalı