Early androgen effects on spatial and mechanical abilities: Evidence from congenital adrenal hyperplasia.

Abstract

There is considerable controversy about the origins of sex differences in cognitive abilities, particularly the male superiority in spatial abilities. We studied effects of early androgens on spatial and mechanical abilities in adolescents and young adults with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). On tests of 3D mental rotations, geography, and mechanical knowledge, females with CAH scored higher than their unaffected sisters, and males with CAH scored lower than their unaffected brothers. Exploratory regression analyses suggest that androgens affect spatial ability in females directly and through male-typed activity interests. Findings indicate that early androgens influence spatial and mechanical abilities, and that androgen effects on abilities may occur in part through effects on sex-typed activity interests.

Sex differences in mathematical achievement: Grades, national test, and self-confidence

“…There is a theory that during the prenatal period, having an opposite-sex co-twin can change the level of prenatal testosterone, resulting in differentiated brain structure and masculinization of girls (Tapp et al, 2011;Ahrenfeldt et al, 2015). This means that girls from opposite-sex pairs are more likely to pursue activities linked to the development of spatial abilities (Berenbaum et al, 2012;Constantinescu & Hines, 2012) and have fewer differences from boys in mathematical ability and mathematical achievement (as found in our study). Thus, biological factors related to the formation of mathematical ability could be linked with sex differences as well.…”

Spatial function in adolescents and young adults with congenital adrenal hyperplasia: Clinical phenotype and implications for the androgen hypothesis

“…The capacity of androgens to modify spatially relevant regions of the CNS in laboratory animals (Isgor and Sengelaub, 2003) supports the possibility that spatial function in humans too is organized by androgens. A few studies have reported superior performance by females with CAH relative to controls on mental rotation tasks, figural disembedding, or learning the layout of a virtual environment (Resnick et al, 1986;Hampson et al, 1998;Mueller et al, 2008;Berenbaum et al, 2012), but these data are controversial because other studies have failed to find an effect on spatial abilities (Baker and Ehrhardt, 1974;McGuire et al, 1975;Helleday et al, 1994) or have even found lower scores in CAH samples (Perlman, 1973). Hines et al (2003) reported that females with CAH outperformed unaffected female relatives on throwing projectiles at targets, but showed no difference on tests of mental rotation.…”

Gender Assignment, Reassignment and Outcome in Disorders of Sex Development: Update of the 2005 Consensus Conference

“…For instance, females with CAH have been found to show enhanced (more male-typical) knowledge of geography [57], knowledge that can only be acquired through experience. Thus, androgen exposure appears to affect this outcome via psychosocial influences.…”