From my post in
this thread were we discussed the endocrine system and emotions last October:
There was a study done (1993) that found men higher in endogenous testosterone production were less likely to marry; once married, they are more likely to leave home because of trouble marital relations, extramarital sex, hitting or throwing things at their spouses, and experiencing a lower quality of marital interaction.
Another study (1991) tested male offenders. Offenders high in testosterone commited more violent crimes, were judged more harshly by the parole board, and violated prison rules more often than those low in testosterone.
Interesting enough, as cortisol concentraions increased, the corelation between testosterone and violent behavior dropped. This could be explained from less testosterone aromatizing to estrogen and instead binding to glucocorticoid receptors... since estrogen aromatization has been linked to increased aggressiveness...
To see a how hormone levels effect our general disposition, you can just look at the differences in men and women. A survey (1991) of 560 college age men and woman found significant gender differences. Adult men reported more physical and verbal aggression than did woman. Men also had higher scores on measures of impulsivity and lack of frustration tollerance than did woman, while woman were more likely to avoid confrontation.
Winning vs Losing - I was just looking at two other studies that looked at the responses to winning and losing that shared the same results. "Winners had higher testosterone levels than the losers - with no significant difference in close and decisive contests. Mood was depressed in decisive losers... perception to winning or losing, regardless of actual performance, differtially influenced testosterone levels but not cortisol levels, and that changes are not simply general arousal effects but are related to mood and status change (1989)." "Winners reported more positive mood change and higher testosterone levels than did a neutral group that did not win or lose money (1992).
BTW "Roid Rage" is just media hype. There is NO EXCUSE FOR LOSING YOUR TEMPER OR BECOMING IRRATIONAL - if you can't control yourself as is - don't go dumping more hormones into your system... JMO...