Josephs Robert A, Sellers Jennifer Guinn, Newman Matthew L, Mehta Pranjal H
Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, USA.
J Pers Soc Psychol. 2006 Jun;90(6):999-1013. doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.90.6.999.
Why do some people strive for high status, whereas others actively avoid it? In the present studies, the authors examined the psychological and physiological consequences of a mismatch between baseline testosterone and a person's current level of status. The authors tested this mismatch effect by placing high and low testosterone individuals into high or low status positions using a rigged competition. In Study 1, low testosterone participants reported greater emotional arousal, focused more on their status, and showed worse cognitive functioning in a high status position. High testosterone participants showed this pattern in a low status position. In Study 2, the emotional arousal findings were replicated with heart rate, and the cognitive findings were replicated using a math test. In Study 3, the authors demonstrate that testosterone is a better predictor of behavior than self-report measures of the need for dominance. Discussion focuses on the value of measuring hormones in personality and social psychology.
为什么有些人追求高地位，而另一些人却积极回避呢？在当前的研究中，作者们考察了基线睾酮水平与一个人当前地位水平不匹配所带来的心理和生理后果。作者们通过一场有操纵的竞赛，将高睾酮水平和低睾酮水平的个体置于高地位或低地位的位置，来测试这种不匹配效应。在研究1中，低睾酮水平的参与者报告了更高的情绪唤醒水平，更关注自己的地位，并且在高地位的位置上表现出更差的认知功能。高睾酮水平的参与者在低地位的位置上表现出这种模式。在研究2中，通过心率重复了情绪唤醒的研究结果，并且使用数学测试重复了认知方面的研究结果。在研究3中，作者们证明，与自我报告的支配需求测量相比，睾酮是行为的更好预测指标。讨论集中在人格和社会心理学中测量激素的价值上。
