Testosterone has been theorized to direct status-seeking behaviors, including competitive behavior. However, most human studies to date have adopted correlational designs, and findings across studies are inconsistent. This experiment (n = 115) pharmacologically manipulated men's testosterone levels prior to a mixed-gender math competition and examined basal cortisol (a hormone implicated in stress and social avoidance) and context cues related to an opponent's perceived status (an opponent's gender or a win/loss in a prior competition) as factors that may moderate testosterone's impact on competitive behavior. We test and find support for the hypothesis that testosterone given to low-cortisol men evokes status-seeking behavior, whereas testosterone given to high-cortisol men evokes status-loss avoidance. In the initial rounds of competition, testosterone's influence on competitive decisions depended on basal cortisol and opponent gender. After providing opponent-specific win-lose feedback, testosterone's influence on decisions to reenter competitions depended on basal cortisol and this objective cue to status, not gender. Compared to placebo, men given exogenous testosterone who were low in basal cortisol showed an increased tendency to compete against male and high-status opponents relative to female and low-status opponents (status-seeking). Men given exogenous testosterone who were high in basal cortisol showed the opposite pattern-an increased tendency to compete against female and low-status opponents relative to male and high-status opponents (status-loss avoidance). These results provide support for a context-dependent dual-hormone hypothesis: Testosterone flexibly directs men's competitive behavior contingent on basal cortisol levels and cues that signal an opponent's status. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

中文翻译：

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睾丸激素对男性竞争行为的因果效应受到基础皮质醇和对手状态线索的调节：背景依赖性双激素假说的证据。

睾丸激素已被理论化为指导寻求地位的行为，包括竞争行为。然而，迄今为止，大多数人体研究都采用了相关设计，并且研究结果不一致。该实验 (n = 115) 在混合性别数学竞赛之前通过药理学方法控制男性的睾丸激素水平，并检查基础皮质醇（一种与压力和社交回避有关的激素）和与对手的感知状态（对手的性别或胜利）相关的背景线索/在之前的比赛中失利）作为可能缓和睾丸激素对竞争行为影响的因素。我们测试并找到了对以下假设的支持：给予低皮质醇男性的睾酮会引起寻求地位的行为，而给予高皮质醇男性的睾酮会引起地位丧失回避。在最初几轮比赛中，睾酮对竞争决策的影响取决于基础皮质醇和对手的性别。在提供特定于对手的输赢反馈后，睾丸激素对重新参加比赛的决定的影响取决于基础皮质醇和这种客观的地位线索，而不是性别。与安慰剂相比，给予外源性睾酮且基础皮质醇水平较低的男性表现出与男性和高地位对手竞争的倾向高于女性和低地位对手（寻求地位）。给予外源性睾酮且基础皮质醇含量高的男性表现出相反的模式——相对于男性和地位高的对手而言，他们更倾向于与女性和地位低的对手竞争（地位损失回避）。这些结果支持依赖于环境的双激素假设：睾酮根据基础皮质醇水平和表明对手状态的线索灵活地指导男性的竞争行为。（PsycInfo 数据库记录 (c) 2022 APA，保留所有权利）。