Interactions between conspecifics trigger the release of dopamine (DA), primarily from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) into the Nucleus Accumbens (NAc), promoting pleasure and positive reinforcement. Disruptions in DA levels can impact social motivation, potentially decreasing responsiveness to social reward and increasing the risk for social anxiety disorder.Using the social fear conditioning (SFC) paradigm, we investigated how DA regulates social motivation and its role in processing social fear. Our approach combined behavioural pharmacology and molecular techniques focusing on the VTA and the NAc.Initially, we examined changes in dopaminergic-related gene expression in the NAc 90 minutes following distinct phases of social fear processing: acquisition, long-term memory (LTM) expression, and extinction learning. Notably, increased D1 receptor gene expression was observed specifically after SFC extinction. Subsequently, we explored the functional implications of these D1 receptors in SFC extinction. Local infusion of a D1 receptor antagonist (SCH23390) into the NAc administered 10 minutes before SFC extinction learning, impaired extinction without affecting LTM expression. Moreover, this treatment diminished social motivation in unconditioned animals and decreased exploratory behaviour in the open field, novel object, and sociability tests. No motor alterations were detected following treatment, as assessed by the wire-hang test. Importantly, the activation of the D1 receptors via an agonist (SKF38393) 10 minutes before, facilitated SFC extinction learning.In summary, our research reveals that D1 receptors in the NAc play a pivotal role in SFC extinction learning. Moreover, these receptors govern not only social motivation but also influence motivation for various non-social behaviours.