title: The influence of social hierarchy on primate health.
abstract: Dominance hierarchies occur in numerous social species, and rank within them can greatly influence the quality of life of an animal. In this review, I consider how rank can also influence physiology and health. I first consider whether it is high- or low-ranking animals that are most stressed in a dominance hierarchy; this turns out to vary as a function of the social organization in different species and populations. I then review how the stressful characteristics of social rank have adverse adrenocortical, cardiovascular, reproductive, immunological, and neurobiological consequences. Finally, I consider how these findings apply to the human realm of health, disease, and socioeconomic status.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Biological Sciences, Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, MC 5020, Stanford, CA 94305-5020, USA. sapolsky@stanford.edu
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Sapolsky
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001007:Anxiety; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000378:metabolism; D004291:Dominance-Subordination; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism; D007107:Immune System / Q000502:physiology; D009424:Nervous System Physiological Phenomena; D011323:Primates / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology; D012098:Reproduction; D012919:Social Behavior; D012923:Social Class; D012930:Social Dominance; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D002395:Catecholamines; D006854:Hydrocortisone