Addiction medicine specialist Gabor Maté points to four brain systems affected by parenting quality: the endorphin-based attachment-reward system for forming loving bonds, the dopamine-based system that motivates, the self-regulating behavior system based in the prefrontal cortex, and the stress-response system. Each system is controlled by a delicate balance of endorphins, dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine. When this balance is disrupted, we often use external stimuli, or drugs of abuse, to compensate.
