In line with recent research suggesting that testosterone may only be related to decisions under specific conditions, we show that testosterone is associated with conspicuous consumption only when intrasexual competition is high. In three studies, we provide empirical evidence that prenatal and circulating testosterone are only related to conspicuous consumption when intrasexual competition is high. These findings are in line with recent literature that posits that testosterone is only related to particular decisions or behavior when status is at stake. In Study 1, we find that masculinized digit ratios (an indicator of high prenatal testosterone exposure) are only related to greater conspicuous consumption preferences for men that score high on an intrasexual competitiveness trait measure. In Study 2, we find that masculinized digit ratios are associated with greater conspicuous consumption preferences, but only among men who are primed with an intrasexual competition recall task. Finally, the purpose of Study 3 was to test if similar effects held when measuring circulating testosterone. We show that baseline levels of circulating testosterone are associated with greater conspicuous consumption preferences, but only after men are primed with intrasexual competition. Overall, we identify intrasexual competition as a crucial precondition for relationships between testosterone (prenatal and circulating) and conspicuous consumption to emerge. We argue that men with masculinized digit ratios and men with high circulating testosterone may be more likely to choose conspicuous products as a status-signaling strategy in the mating market if they are inherently intrasexually competitive or when they encounter an intrasexually competitive situation.

中文翻译：

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类固醇消费：睾酮对炫耀性消费偏好的影响和性内竞争的调节作用

最近的研究表明，睾酮可能仅与特定条件下的决定有关，我们表明，仅当性内竞争激烈时，睾酮才与炫耀性消费相关。在三项研究中，我们提供了经验证据，证明产前和循环睾酮仅与性内竞争激烈时的炫耀性消费有关。这些发现与最近的文献一致，后者认为睾丸激素仅与地位受到威胁时的特定决定或行为有关。在研究 1 中，我们发现男性化的手指比率（高产前睾丸激素暴露的指标）仅与在性内竞争力特征测量中得分高的男性更显着的消费偏好有关。在研究 2 中，我们发现男性化的手指比例与更显眼的消费偏好有关，但仅在那些准备进行性内竞争回忆任务的男性中。最后，研究 3 的目的是测试在测量循环睾酮时是否有类似的效果。我们表明循环睾酮的基线水平与更显着的消费偏好相关，但只有在男性开始进行性内竞争之后。总体而言，我们将性内竞争确定为睾酮（产前和循环）与炫耀性消费之间关系出现的关键先决条件。