Social Behavior and Neurogenesis

Adult neurogenesis is a regulated form of brain plasticity shaped by interactions between hormonal systems and environmental context. Social experience has been identified as an important modulator of neuronal proliferation, differentiation, and survival across the lifespan, although effects vary across species, developmental stages, and experimental paradigms. This review synthesizes evidence indicating that diverse social behaviors—including isolation, social hierarchy, parenting, sexual interaction, social buffering, and social learning—engage neuroendocrine, neurochemical, and stress-related pathways that are associated with modulation of hippocampal and olfactory neurogenesis. Affiliative and reproductive contexts have been linked in multiple models to enhanced neurogenic indices via gonadal hormones, oxytocinergic and vasopressinergic signaling, and neurotrophic mechanisms, whereas chronic isolation or social defeat has frequently been associated with reduced neurogenic markers, particularly within stress-sensitive regions of the ventral dentate gyrus. Sex differences further shape these patterns, reflecting both biological regulation and uneven sampling across paradigms. Comparative findings in prairie voles, eusocial mole-rats, nonhuman primates, songbirds, and teleost fish indicate that social organization can be accompanied by either increased or constrained neurogenic activity, depending on ecological pressures and life-history strategies. Collectively, the available evidence suggests that adult neurogenesis represents a context-dependent plastic process embedded within vertebrate social systems, while underscoring the need for integrative and evidence-graded interpretations.