Sex differences and individual differences in cognitive performance and their relationship to endogenous gonadal hormones and gonadotropins.
Sexually dimorphic cognitive performance in men (n=42) and women (n=42) was related to testosterone, estradiol, progesterone, luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and sex hormone binding globulin, measured in 10-ml blood samples collected between 0900 and 1030 and, among women, during the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle. Significant sex differences favored men on spatial tasks (Mental Rotation and Judgment of Line Orientation) and on an inhibition task and favored women on a verbal task (category fluency). However, there were no significant relationships between any of the hormones and cognitive performance, suggesting that there are few, if any, consistent, substantial relationships between endogenous, nonfluctuating levels of gonadal hormones or gonadotropins and these cognitive abilities in men or women.
Halari
Rozmin
R
Department of Psychology, City University, London, England.
Hines
Melissa
M
Kumari
Veena
V
Mehrotra
Ravi
R
Wheeler
Mike
M
Ng
Virginia
V
Sharma
Tonmoy
T
D000328:Adult; D003071:Cognition; D005260:Female; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000097:blood* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006062:Gonadotropins / Q000097:blood* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D012737:Sex Factors; D013028:Space Perception; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis
D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D006062:Gonadotropins