Is Pathogen Disgust Increased on Days of the Menstrual Cycle when Progesterone is High? Evidence from a Between-Subjects Study Using Estimated Progesterone Levels

Abstract

Objective The Compensatory Prophylaxis Hypothesis proposes that women will show increased pathogen disgust at points in the menstrual cycle when progesterone is high, compensating for the immunosuppressive effects of progesterone. However, evidence for the Compensatory Prophylaxis Hypothesis from studies that used longitudinal designs to investigate whether pathogen disgust tracks changes in progesterone is mixed. It was recently proposed that longitudinal designs may be poorly suited to testing the Compensatory Prophylaxis Hypothesis because carry-over effects when women are tested repeatedly in within-subject designs might obscure the effects of progesterone and pathogen disgust. Consequently, we used a between-subjects design to test for a positive relationship between scores on the pathogen disgust subscale of the Three Domain Disgust Scale and progesterone levels imputed from menstrual cycle data using actuarial tables. Methods We employed a between-subject design on N = 1346 women using the Three Domains of Disgust Scale (TDDS). Results We found no evidence for a positive effect of progesterone on pathogen disgust, suggesting that null results for the hypothesized relationship between progesterone and pathogen disgust are not limited to studies using designs that may be subject to carry-over effects caused by repeated testing. Conclusion Our results add to a growing body of research that does not support the Compensatory Prophylaxis Hypothesis.

An Eye Tracking Study Examining the Role of Mating Strategies, Perceived Vulnerability to Disease, and Disgust in Attention to Pathogenic Cues

“…Curtis et al ( 2004 ) showed that disgust sensitivity declines with age, therefore, it is important to attempt to replicate these findings with older adults and with participants from different cultures. However, Raifee et al ( 2022 ) did not find any evidence for age-related declines in pathogen disgust. Third, in this study we only tested the role of short-term mating and its association with viewing pathogen cues.…”

Association between Disgust Sensitivity during Pregnancy and Endogenous Steroids: A Longitudinal Study

“…Additionally, two longitudinal studies, one of which again used video stimuli [17] and the other used a text-based questionnaire [18], also failed to find evidence supporting this hypothesis. The results of a cross-sectional study conducted by Rafiee et al [19], which observed the relationship between estimated levels of progesterone and estradiol and pathogen-related disgust, also found no supporting evidence. On the other hand, the results of two different longitudinal studies do support the compensatory prophylaxis hypothesis: they found that women had higher disgust sensitivity during the luteal phase than during menstruation [20] or the follicular phase [21].…”

Association between Disgust Sensitivity during Pregnancy and Endogenous Steroids: A Longitudinal Study

“…Similarly, later cross-sectional studies -one that used video stimuli to elicit disgust [15], another that applied two different disgust scales [16], and two longitudinal studies, one of which again used video stimuli [17] and the other used the Three Domains of Disgust Scale [18] -found no evidence in support of the compensatory prophylaxis hypothesis. The results of a cross-sectional study by Rafiee et al [19], which observed the relationship between estimated (based on the calculated day of the cycle) levels of progesterone and estradiol, and scores on the Pathogen domain of the Three Domains of Disgust Scale, also found no supporting evidence. On the other hand, the results of two other longitudinal studies do support the compensatory prophylaxis hypothesis: they found that women had higher disgust sensitivity during the luteal phase than during menstruation [20]or during the follicular phase [21].…”