Line Between Love and Hate Is Actually Very Thin, Scientists Find Proof

Within the human brain, the two emotions love, and hate are intimately linked. This was found during a study that discovered the biological basis for the two most intense emotions.

Scientists studying hate found that some of the nervous circuits in the brain that are active when someone is feeling hateful are the same as those that activate while feeling romantic love. This happens despite the fact that love and hate seem to be conflicting emotions.

The study got these findings while showing pictures of someone the participant in the study hated. The neural circuits which are also being referred to as the ‘hate circuit’ shared a lot in common with the so-called love circuit!

According to Professor Semir Zeki of University College London, these findings could explain why both emotions – heroic and evil – could be so similar.

“Hate is often considered to be an evil passion that should, in a better world, be tamed, controlled, and eradicated. To the biologist, hate is a passion that is of equal interest to love,” Professor Zeki said.

“Like love, it is often seemingly irrational and can lead an individual to heroic and evil deeds. How can two opposite sentiments lead to the same behavior?”

17 people were chosen to participate in the study and were asked to select one person they had an extreme hatred for.

Most people chose their ex-lovers or a political figure.

Researchers found that the hate circuit includes parts of the brain called the putamen and the insula, found in the sub-cortex of the brain. The putamen is already known to be involved in the perception of contempt and disgust and may also be part of the motor system involved in movement and action.

“Significantly, the putamen and the insula are also both activated by romantic love. This is not surprising. The putamen could also be involved in the preparation of aggressive acts in a romantic context, as in situations when a rival presents a danger,” Professor Zeki said.

“Previous studies have suggested that the insula may be involved in responses to distressing stimuli, and the viewing of both a loved and a hated face may constitute such a distressing signal.”

One significant difference between love and hate appears to be in the fact that large parts of the cerebral cortex which is associated with judgment and reasoning become de-activated during attachment, whereas only a small area is deactivated in hate.

“This may seem surprising since hate can also be an all-consuming passion like love. But whereas in romantic love, the lover is often less critical and judgmental regarding the loved person, it is more likely that in the context of hate the hater may want to exercise judgment in calculating moves to harm, injure, or otherwise exact revenge,” Professor Zeki said.

“Interestingly, the activity of some of these structures in response to a hated face is proportional in strength to the declared intensity of hate, thus allowing the subjective state of hate to be objectively quantified. This finding may have implications in criminal cases.”

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