Dominance and testosterone in women

Grant, Valerie J.; France, John T.

doi:10.1016/s0301-0511(01)00100-4

Cited by 133 publications

(87 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Given that higher testosterone is also associated with higher BMI in women (e.g., Sowers et al 2001), there is likely a functional relationship between testosterone, social status, and body size in this population. However, whereas women's dominance and aggression have been positively associated with testosterone in some studies (e.g., Cashdan 2003;Grant and France 2001), others have found negative associations between androgens and social status (e.g., Cashdan 1995), suggesting that the contexts of this relationship may be different for women than it is for men. Indeed, it has been hypothesized that women are more likely to compete indirectly for mates (i.e., reducing the attractiveness of other females, gossiping) rather than engaging in physical altercations with them (Campbell and Cross 2012).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Body Mass Index Predicts Fighting Ability in Female UFC Fighters, but Facial Width-to-Height Ratio May Not

Palmer-Hague

Zilioli

Jagore

et al. 2015

Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology

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Several lines of evidence suggest that facial-width-to-height ratio (fWHR) provides an accurate cue to men's formidability, thus providing observers with a reliable estimate of their potential success in an interpersonal physical conflict. The degree to which fWHR provides the same information in women's faces, however, remains unclear. In fact, morphological characteristics, such as body size, may be more effective indicators of formidability in women. In the present study, we analyzed the effects of both fWHR and body mass index (BMI) on total number of fights and total number of wins in female competitive Ultimate Fighting Challenge (UFC) fighters. After controlling for number of active years fighting, we found that BMI significantly predicted number of wins in female fighters. The effects of fWHR were not significant, but warrant replication with a larger sample. These results suggest that in women, body size, rather than fWHR, may be a more accurate indicator of success in aggressive interpersonal conflicts. Our findings contribute to a growing body of literature that shows distinct differences in men and women's interpersonal aggressive and dominance behavior, as well as their morphological indicators.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Body Mass Index Predicts Fighting Ability in Female UFC Fighters, but Facial Width-to-Height Ratio May Not

Palmer-Hague

Zilioli

Jagore

et al. 2015

Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology

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“…For example, female mice born between two males (2M) tend to be masculinized and have more male offspring (Vandenbergh & Huggett 1995, Vom Saal et al 1999. Dominant women with elevated serum testosterone concentrations are reported to have significantly more sons than submissive females with lower testosterone concentrations (Grant 1994, Singh & Zambarano 1997, Grant & France 2001, and James (1990) has implicated high testosterone concentrations in the mother around the time of conception as a factor likely to favor sons. However, our data show that the mice on the LF diet unexpectedly had the highest testosterone concentrations at 0 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal diet composition alters serum steroid and free fatty acid concentrations and vaginal pH in mice

Whyte¹,

Alexenko²,

Davis³

et al. 2007

Journal of Endocrinology

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We examined the effects of three maternal diets (very high fat (VHF), low fat (LF), and control (Purina 5015)) on serum steroids, free fatty acids (FFA), and vaginal pH in National Institutes of Health Swiss mice. Females were fed (VHF, nZ33; LF, nZ33; 5015, nZ48) from 4 to 16 weeks of age. Following breeding, female serum was collected at 0 . 5 (pre-implantation, early diestrus) or 8 . 5 (post-implantation, mid-diestrus) days post-coitus (dpc). The serum concentrations of 17b-estradiol, testosterone, progesterone, and FFA were analyzed at both collection points, and vaginal pH at 0 . 5 dpc. Striking differences in steroids and FFA were observed at 0 . 5 dpc among the groups. Estradiol was higher in the VHF (14 . 1G3 . 0 pg/ml), compared with LF mice (5 . 2G2 . 3 pg/ml; P%0 . 05). In contrast, 0 . 5 dpc testosterone was lower in the VHF (10 . 5G3 . 0 pg/ml) versus the LF group (32 . 7G8 . 4 pg/ml; P%0 . 05). At 8 . 5 dpc, progesterone was higher in the VHF (89 . 6G6 . 7 ng/ml) versus the 5015 group (60 . 1G4 . 9 ng/ml; P%0 . 05). VHF mice had higher FFA concentrations at 0 . 5 dpc (1 . 0G0 . 2 mmol/l) than LF and control mice (0 . 5G0 . 1 and 0 . 6G0 . 1 mmol/l respectively; P%0 . 05). At 8 . 5 dpc, VHF females had higher serum FFA (0 . 8G0 . 1 mmol/l) than LF and control females (0 . 4G0 . 1 and 0 . 6G0 . 1 mmol/l; P%0 . 05). Mean vaginal pH of VHF females (6 . 41G0 . 09) was lower than 5015 females (6 . 76G 0 . 10; P%0 . 05). These diet-induced alterations in serum steroid and FFA concentrations might affect several reproductive processes, including preferential fertilization by one class of sperm over the other and sex bias in pre-and post-implantational embryonic development.

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“…However, levels of testosterone in women vary over the course of the menstrual cycle and even over the course of several days (Sellers et al 2007). A number of studies have found associations between basal or exogenous levels of testosterone and behaviors or attitudes associated with dominance striving in men and women (Dabbs 1997, Wirth & Schultheiss 2007 and women alone (Cashdan 1995, Grant & France 2001, Hermans et al 2006a.…”

Section: Some Evidence From Adult Men and Womenmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Early Development of Gender Differences

McIntyre

Edwards

2009

Annu. Rev. Anthropol.

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This article reviews findings from anthropology, psychology, and other disciplines about the role of biological factors in the development of sex differences in human behavior, including biological theories, the developmental course of sex differences, and the interaction of biological and cultural gendering processes at different ages. Current evidence suggests that major biological influences on individual differences in human gender, to the extent that they exist, operate primarily in early development, during and especially prior to puberty. Biological effects are likely to be mediated by relatively simple processes, like temperament, which are then elaborated through social interactions (as with mother and peers) into more complex gendered features of adult personality. Biological anthropologists and psychologists interested in gender should direct more attention to understanding how social processes influence the development and function of the reproductive endocrine system.

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Dominance and testosterone in women

Cited by 133 publications

References 13 publications

Body Mass Index Predicts Fighting Ability in Female UFC Fighters, but Facial Width-to-Height Ratio May Not

Body Mass Index Predicts Fighting Ability in Female UFC Fighters, but Facial Width-to-Height Ratio May Not

Maternal diet composition alters serum steroid and free fatty acid concentrations and vaginal pH in mice

The Early Development of Gender Differences

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