title: Fulfilling desire: evidence for negative feedback between men's testosterone, sociosexual psychology, and sexual partner number.
abstract: Across human societies and many nonhuman animals, males have greater interest in uncommitted sex (more unrestricted sociosexuality) than do females. Testosterone shows positive associations with male-typical sociosexual behavior in nonhuman animals. Yet, it remains unclear whether the human sex difference in sociosexual psychology (attitudes and desires) is mediated by testosterone, whether any relationships between testosterone and sociosexuality differ between men and women, and what the nature of these possible relationships might be. In studies to resolve these questions, we examined relationships between salivary testosterone concentrations and sociosexual psychology and behavior in men and women. We measured testosterone in all men in our sample, but only in those women taking oral contraception (OC-using women) in order to reduce the influence of ovulatory cycle variation in ovarian hormone production. We found that OC-using women did not differ from normally-ovulating women in sociosexual psychology or behavior, but that circulating testosterone mediated the sex difference in human sociosexuality and predicted sociosexual psychology in men but not OC-using women. Moreover, when sociosexual psychology was controlled, men's sociosexual behavior (number of sexual partners) was negatively related to testosterone, suggesting that testosterone drives sociosexual psychology in men and is inhibited when those desires are fulfilled. This more complex relationship between androgens and male sexuality may reconcile some conflicting prior reports.
authors: Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA; Center for Behavior, Brain, and Cognition, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA. Electronic address: dap27@psu.edu.
authors: David A
authors: DA
authors: Puts
authors: Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
authors: Lauramarie E
authors: LE
authors: Pope
authors: Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
authors: Alexander K
authors: AK
authors: Hill
authors: Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
authors: Rodrigo A
authors: RA
authors: Cárdenas
authors: Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
authors: Lisa L M
authors: LL
authors: Welling
authors: Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
authors: John R
authors: JR
authors: Wheatley
authors: Neuroscience Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Marc Breedlove
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001290:Attitude; D030141:Feedback, Psychological / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation / Q000502:physiology; D012463:Saliva / Q000737:chemistry; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000378:metabolism*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D013739:Testosterone
keywords: Androgen; Sex differences; Sexual behavior; Sociosexuality; Testosterone
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