Social Media from the Animal Brain’s Perspective: Roundtable with Dr. Loretta Breuning

Social media sparks dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphin that make us feel good. These chemicals are controlled by our mammalian limbic system, not by our conscious verbal brain. When you know what sparks dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphin in mammals, social media makes sense. 

This roundtable focuses on finding the good in being a big-brained mammal, since the negatives of social media have already been widely covered.

The Inner Mammal Institute offers videos, podcasts, books, blogs, multimedia, a training program, a video course, and a free five-day happy-chemical jumpstart. Details are available at https://innermammalinstitute.org/.

Loretta Graziano Breuning Ph.D
Founder and Author

Loretta Breuning, PhD, is Founder of the Inner Mammal Institute and Professor Emerita of Management at California State University, East Bay. She is the author of many personal development books, including Habits of a Happy Brain: Retrain Your Brain to Boost Your Serotonin, Dopamine, Oxytocin and Endorphin Levels.

As a teacher and a parent, she was not convinced by prevailing theories of human motivation. Then she learned about the brain chemistry we share with earlier mammals, and everything made sense. She began creating resources that have helped thousands of people make peace with their inner mammal. Dr. Breuning's work has been translated into sixteen languages and is featured in major media outlets. Before teaching, she worked for the United Nations in Africa. Loretta gives zoo tours on animal behaviour, having served as a Docent at the Oakland Zoo. She is a graduate of Cornell University and Tufts.