title: Exogenous testosterone increases men's perceptions of their own physical dominance.
abstract: Men's testosterone is associated with several constructs that are linked to dominance rank, such as risk-taking, mating success, and aggression. However, no study has directly tested the relationship between men's self-perceived dominance and testosterone using an experimental design. We employed a within-subjects, double-blind, placebo-controlled paradigm to assess whether testosterone influences men's self-perceived dominance. Exogenous testosterone or a placebo was administered to healthy adult men and self-perceptions of physical dominance were subsequently assessed by having participants select what they believed to be their true face from an array of images digitally manipulated in masculinity. Men picked a more masculine version of their own face after testosterone versus placebo--an effect that was particularly pronounced among men with relatively low baseline testosterone. These findings indicate that a single administration of testosterone can rapidly modulate men's perceptions of their own physical dominance, which may explain links between testosterone and dominance-related behaviors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Oakland University, 2200 N. Squirrel Road, Rochester, MI 48309, USA. Electronic address: welling@oakland.edu.
authors.forename: Lisa L M
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Welling
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Nipissing University, 100 College Drive, Box 5002, North Bay, ON P1B 8L7, Canada. Electronic address: benm@nipissingu.ca.
authors.forename: Benjamin J P
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Moreau
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, ON P3E 2C6, Canada. Electronic address: bbird@laurentian.ca.
authors.forename: Brian M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Bird
authors.affiliation: Physical and Health Education, Nipissing University, 100 College Drive, Box 5002, North Bay, ON P1B 8L7, Canada. Electronic address: steveh@nipissingu.ca.
authors.forename: Steve
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Nipissing University, 100 College Drive, Box 5002, North Bay, ON P1B 8L7, Canada. Electronic address: justinca@nipissingu.ca.
authors.forename: Justin M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Carré
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D057228:Masculinity; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012649:Self Concept; D012930:Social Dominance; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D013739:Testosterone
keywords: Dominance; Face perception; Individual differences; Neuroendocrinology; Social perception; Testosterone