Han Chengyang, Watkins Christopher D, Nan Yu, Ou Jianxin, Lei Xue, Li Xiangqian, Wu Yin
Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Affective and Social Cognitive Science, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China; School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.
Division of Psychology, School of Applied Sciences, Abertay University, Dundee, United Kingdom.
Horm Behav. 2021 Jan;127:104871. doi: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2020.104871. Epub 2020 Oct 16.
Assessing dominance is important for effective social interactions, and prior research suggests that testosterone is associated with men's dominance perceptions. The present study tested for a causal effect of exogenous testosterone on men's sensitivity to vocal cues of other men's dominance, an important parameter in male-male competition across species. One hundred and thirty-nine Chinese men received a single dose (150 mg) of testosterone or placebo gel in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, between-participant design. Participants reported their own dominance and judged other men's dominance from voices. Men's dominance sensitivity was significantly weaker in the testosterone group compared to those in the placebo group. Moreover, men's dominance sensitivity was negatively associated with their self-reported dominance in our Chinese sample, consistent with findings from Western populations. These results indicate that exogenous testosterone has a causal effect in decreasing men's dominance sensitivity, consistent with the Challenge Hypothesis, suggesting that the fluctuation of testosterone concentration mediates individuals' behaviors. Additionally, the present study could motivate further work on vocal assessment in the context of competition in humans and other species.
评估主导地位对于有效的社交互动很重要，先前的研究表明，睾酮与男性的主导地位认知有关。本研究测试了外源性睾酮对男性对其他男性主导地位的声音线索敏感性的因果效应，这是跨物种雄性间竞争的一个重要参数。139名中国男性在一项双盲、安慰剂对照、参与者间设计中接受了单剂量（150毫克）的睾酮或安慰剂凝胶。参与者报告了自己的主导地位，并从声音中判断其他男性的主导地位。与安慰剂组相比，睾酮组男性的主导地位敏感性明显较弱。此外，在我们的中国样本中，男性的主导地位敏感性与他们自我报告的主导地位呈负相关，这与西方人群的研究结果一致。这些结果表明，外源性睾酮对降低男性的主导地位敏感性有因果效应，这与挑战假说一致，表明睾酮浓度的波动介导了个体的行为。此外，本研究可以推动在人类和其他物种竞争背景下关于声音评估的进一步研究。
