Exogenous Testosterone Rapidly Increases Aggressive Behavior in Dominant and Impulsive Men
| Autor: | Pierre L. Bonin, Amber Videto, Brian M. Bird, Justin M. Carré, Triana L. Ortiz, Shawn N. Geniole |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2017 |
| Předmět: |
Adult
Male medicine.medical_specialty Time Factors Adolescent media_common.quotation_subject Provocation test Poison control Amygdala 050105 experimental psychology Self-Control Developmental psychology Young Adult 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Double-Blind Method Internal medicine medicine Humans Testosterone 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences Biological Psychiatry media_common Facial expression Aggression 05 social sciences Self-control medicine.anatomical_structure Endocrinology Social Dominance Hypothalamus Impulsive Behavior Androgens Trait medicine.symptom Psychology 030217 neurology & neurosurgery |
| Zdroj: | Biological Psychiatry. 82:249-256 |
| ISSN: | 0006-3223 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.06.009 |
| Popis: | Background Although traditional wisdom suggests that baseline levels of testosterone (T) promote aggressive behavior, decades of research have produced findings that have been largely weak and inconsistent. However, more recent experimental work suggests that exogenous administration of T rapidly potentiates amygdala and hypothalamus responses to angry facial expressions. Notably, these brain regions are rich in androgen receptors and play a key role in modulating aggressive behavior in animal models. Methods The present experiment extends this work by examining whether acutely increasing T potentiates aggressive behavior in men. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled, between-subject design, healthy adult men ( n = 121) were administered either T or placebo, and subsequently engaged in a well-validated decision-making game that measures aggressive behavior in response to social provocation. In light of prior correlational research, we also assessed the extent to which T's effects on aggressive behavior would depend on variability in trait dominance and/or trait self-control. Results Exogenous T on its own did not modulate aggressive behavior. However, T's effects on aggression were strongly influenced by variation in trait dominance and trait self-control. Specifically, T caused an increase in aggressive behavior, but only among men scoring relatively high in trait dominance or low in trait self-control. Conclusions These findings are the first to demonstrate that T can rapidly (within 60 minutes) potentiate aggressive behavior, but only among men with dominant or impulsive personality styles. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|
Full Text from ScienceDirect