title: Competition, testosterone, and adult neurobehavioral plasticity.
abstract: Motivation in performance is often measured via competitions. Winning a competition has been found to increase the motivation to perform in subsequent competitions. One potential neurobiological mechanism that regulates the motivation to compete involves sex hormones, such as the steroids testosterone and estradiol. A wealth of studies in both nonhuman animals and humans have shown that a rise in testosterone levels before and after winning a competition enhances the motivation to compete. There is strong evidence for acute behavioral effects in response to steroid hormones. Intriguingly, a substantial testosterone surge following a win also appears to improve an individual's performance in later contests resulting in a higher probability of winning again. These effects may occur via androgen and estrogen pathways modulating dopaminergic regions, thereby behavior on longer timescales. Hormones thus not only regulate and control social behavior but are also key to adult neurobehavioral plasticity. Here, we present literature showing hormone-driven behavioral effects that persist for extended periods of time beyond acute effects of the hormone, highlighting a fundamental role of sex steroid hormones in adult neuroplasticity. We provide an overview of the relationship between testosterone, motivation measured from objective effort, and their influence in enhancing subsequent effort in competitions. Implications for an important role of testosterone in enabling neuroplasticity to improve performance will be discussed.
authors.affiliation: Neuropsychopharmacology and Biopsychology Unit, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. Electronic address: annabel.losecaat.vermeer@univie.ac.at.
authors.forename: A B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Losecaat Vermeer
authors.affiliation: Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Riečanský
authors.affiliation: Neuropsychopharmacology and Biopsychology Unit, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. Electronic address: christoph.eisenegger@univie.ac.at.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Eisenegger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D003163:Competitive Behavior / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000187:drug effects*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D013739:Testosterone; D004298:Dopamine
keywords: Competition; Motivation; Neuroplasticity; Testosterone; Winner effect