The Effect of Testosterone Administration and Digit Ratio (2D:4D) on Implicit Preference for Status Goods in Healthy Males

Testosterone has been linked to social status seeking in humans. The present study investigated the effects of testosterone administration on implicit and explicit preferences for status goods in healthy male participants (n = 64), using a double-blind, placebo-controlled, between-subjects design. We also investigated the interactive effect between second-to-fourth digit ratio (2D:4D; i.e., a proximal index of prenatal testosterone) and testosterone treatment on status preferences. Results showed that testosterone administration has no discernable influence on self-reported willingness-to-pay (i.e., the explicit measure) or implicit attitudes towards status goods. Individuals with lower 2D:4D (i.e., more masculine) had more positive attitudes for high-status goods on an Implicit Association Task, and this association was abolished with testosterone administration. These data suggest interactive effects of acute testosterone administration and prenatal testosterone exposure on human social status seeking, and highlight the utility of implicit methods for measuring status-related behavior.

[1]  S. Donn.  Second-to-fourth digit ratio predicts success among high-frequency financial traders , 2009 .

[2]  C. Apicella,et al.  Testosterone and Economic Risk Taking: A Review , 2015 .

[3]  P. Cowen,et al.  Propranolol reduces implicit negative racial bias , 2012, Psychopharmacology.

[4]  E. Fehr,et al.  Pharmacokinetics of testosterone and estradiol gel preparations in healthy young men , 2013, Psychoneuroendocrinology.

[5]  Paola Sapienza,et al.  Gender differences in financial risk aversion and career choices are affected by testosterone , 2009, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[6]  M. Degroot,et al.  Measuring utility by a single-response sequential method. , 1964, Behavioral science.

[7]  Niro Sivanathan,et al.  Protecting the self through consumption: Status goods as affirmational commodities , 2010 .

[8]  J. Dreher,et al.  Testosterone causes both prosocial and antisocial status-enhancing behaviors in human males , 2016, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[9]  A. Greenwald,et al.  Measuring individual differences in implicit cognition: the implicit association test. , 1998, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[10]  D. Watson,et al.  Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: the PANAS scales. , 1988, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[11]  Pablo Brañas-Garza,et al.  Experimental and Self‐Reported Measures of Risk Taking and Digit Ratio (2d:4d): Evidence from a Large, Systematic Study , 2018 .

[12]  Larry E. Toothaker,et al.  Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions , 1991 .

[13]  Aldo Rustichini,et al.  Second-to-fourth digit ratio predicts success among high-frequency financial traders , 2009, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[14]  E. Viding,et al.  Digit ratio (2D:4D) and psychopathic traits moderate the effect of exogenous testosterone on socio-cognitive processes in men , 2015, Psychoneuroendocrinology.

[15]  E. Fehr,et al.  The role of testosterone in social interaction , 2011, Trends in Cognitive Sciences.

[16]  Jacob Cohen,et al.  Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences , 1979 .

[17]  Gad Saad,et al.  The effect of conspicuous consumption on men’s testosterone levels , 2009 .

[18]  Colin Camerer,et al.  Single-Dose Testosterone Administration Impairs Cognitive Reflection in Men , 2017, Psychology Science.

[19]  E. Fehr,et al.  Prejudice and truth about the effect of testosterone on human bargaining behaviour , 2010, Nature.

[20]  A. Espín,et al.  Can exposure to prenatal sex hormones (2D:4D) predict cognitive reflection? , 2014, Psychoneuroendocrinology.

[21]  Steven J. Stanton,et al.  The hormonal correlates of implicit power motivation. , 2009, Journal of research in personality.

[22]  Derek D. Rucker,et al.  Desire to Acquire: Powerlessness and Compensatory Consumption , 2008 .

[23]  G. Cornelissen,et al.  Status-Relevant Experiences and Conspicuous Consumption – the Moderating Role of Prenatal Androgen Exposure , 2016, The Spanish Journal of Psychology.

[24]  Shaul Shalvi,et al.  Oxytocin promotes human ethnocentrism , 2011, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[25]  Ernst Fehr,et al.  New evidence on testosterone and cooperation: reply , 2012 .

[26]  Michael W. Davidson,et al.  Digit ratio (2D:4D) and social integration: An effect of prenatal sex hormones , 2017, Network Science.

[27]  Peter A. Bos,et al.  New evidence on testosterone and cooperation , 2012, Nature.

[28]  T. Veblen.  The Theory of the Leisure Class , 1901 .

[29]  G. Saad,et al.  Testosterone & gift-giving: Mating confidence moderates the association between digit ratios (2D:4D and rel2) and erotic gift-giving , 2016 .

[30]  W. Güth,et al.  An experimental analysis of ultimatum bargaining , 1982 .

[31]  G. Saad,et al.  Testosterone at your fingertips: Digit ratios (2D:4D and rel2) as predictors of courtship-related consumption intended to acquire and retain mates , 2016 .

[32]  E. C. Ritchie,et al.  Gender Differences , 1981, Language in Society.

[33]  Anthony G. Greenwald,et al.  Predictive Validity of the Implicit Association Test in Studies of Brands, Consumer Attitudes, and Behavior , 2004 .

[34]  D. Schutter,et al.  Testosterone administration impairs cognitive empathy in women depending on second-to-fourth digit ratio , 2011, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.