Hormonal Mechanisms

Question 1

What is testosterone?

Answer 1

An androgen responsible for the development of masculine features, though it is found in low levels in women, and is associated with aggression.

Question 2

Are high testosterone levels always associated with aggression?

Answer 2

Men with high levels of testosterone are not necessarily highly aggressive: behaviour may manifest itself in athletic prowess or competitiveness.

Question 3

Does testosterone always cause aggressive behaviour?

Answer 3

No.

There are examples of women with low levels of testosterone who have behaved with great aggression.

Question 4

Prisoners who had committed unprovoked violent crimes had what?

(Naturally occurring examples of testosterone)

Answer 4

Prisoners who had committed unprovoked violent crimes had higher levels of testosterone than those who had committed nonviolent crimes.

Question 5

Outline the study completed by Dabbs in 1987.

(Supports the relationship between high levels of testosterone and aggression)
(Naturally occurring examples of testosterone)

Answer 5

Supports the relationship between high levels of testosterone and aggression.

This is because they found teens with higher levels of testosterone were more prone to delinquency, hard drug use, and provocations.

This suggests that higher levels of testosterone lead to greater antisocial behaviour.

Question 6

Outline the study completed by Mairead Dolan et al in 2001.

(Supports the relationship between high levels of testosterone and aggression)
(Naturally occurring examples of testosterone)

Answer 6

Supports the relationship between high levels of testosterone and aggression.

This is because they found a positive correlation between testosterone levels and aggressive behaviours in a sample of 60 male offenders in UK maximum security prisons, with them suffering from personality disorders (psychopathy) and with histories of impulsively violent behaviour.

This suggests that the greater the testosterone level, the more pronounced the violent behaviour.

Question 7

Outline the study completed by VanGoozen et al, (1995-1997).

(Supports the relationship between levels of testosterone and aggression)

Answer 7

Supports the relationship between levels of testosterone and aggression.

This is because when they used a natural experiment to study people undergoing sex change operations, they found women changing to men received testosterone injections – becoming more aggressive - and men changing to women received testosterone suppressants – becoming less aggressive.

This suggests there are hormonal patterns to aggressive behaviour.

Question 8

What does research show about increasing and decreasing testosterone levels, for aggression?

Answer 8

Lowering testosterone levels reduces aggressiveness.

Increasing testosterone levels increases aggressiveness.

Question 9

Outline the study completed by Bertold in 1849.

(Supports the relationship between low levels of testosterone and docile behaviour)

Answer 9

Supports the relationship between low levels of testosterone and docile behaviour.

This is because when cockerels where castrated, aggressive behaviour was reduced.

This was reversed when the testes were replaced.
This suggests that the greater the testosterone level, the more pronounced the violent behaviour.

Question 10

Outline the study completed by Simpson in 2001.

(Supports the relationship between low levels of testosterone and docile behaviour)

Answer 10

Supports the relationship between low levels of testosterone and docile behaviour.

This is because they found that castration leads to a marked decrease in aggression, and that hormone therapy afterwards increases and restores aggression levels.

This suggests that the greater the testosterone level, the more pronounced the violent behaviour.

Question 11

Outline the study completed by Connor and Levine in 1969.

(Supports the idea that testosterone sensitivity is a result of developmental processes)

Answer 11

Supports the idea that testosterone sensitivity is a result of developmental processes.

This is because when they experimented on rats; those castrated when young had low levels of testosterone into adulthood.

If they were then given testosterone as adults, they remained relatively passive.

However, if castrated as adults and subsequently given testosterone, they returned to pre-castration levels of aggression.

This suggests that there are developmental resistances to hormones associated with aggression.

Question 12

Levels of what, affect the activity of what?

Answer 12

Testosterone levels affect the activity of the OFC.

Question 13

If someone has high levels of testosterone, what happens to activity in the OFC?

(Testosterone and the OFC).

Answer 13

If an individual has high levels of testosterone when activity in the OFC is reduced.

Question 14

If an individual has high levels of testosterone then activity in the OFC is reduced.

What could this mean if they are placed in an emotional situation?

Answer 14

They could produce a heightened emotionally aggressive response.

Question 15

The fact that testosterone levels can affect OFC activity suggests what?

Answer 15

Suggests that biological explanations do not necessarily work in isolation to one another.

Hormones can have an impact on the functioning of brain structures.

Question 16

Outline Mehta and Joseph’s study from 2006.

(Supports the relationship between high levels of testosterone and aggressive behaviour)

Answer 16

Supports the relationship between high levels of testosterone and aggressive behaviour.

This is because they measured changes in their male PPs testosterone levels before and after a competitive game (which they all lost); they were then asked whether they wanted to challenge their victorious opponent to another competition (aggressive) or complete an unrelated task (non-aggressive).

Of the losers whose testosterone levels rose after their loss, 73% re-challenged; but of the losers whose testosterone dropped, only 22% re-challenged.

This suggests that after a loss of status, individuals only behaved aggressively (choosing to re-challenge) after an increase in testosterone levels.

This also makes sense from an evolutionary perspective, as being competitive for e.g. food, land - increases survival; re-entering a ‘competition’ with increased aggression allows the person to have a greater chance of winning, thus ‘surviving’ - would be less likely to survive if testosterone decreased, hence why many did not re-challenge.

Question 17

Is the link between testosterone and aggression in humans straight forward?

Answer 17

No, the link between testosterone and aggression in humans is mixed.

Question 18

Outline the what was proposed by Carre and Mehta in 2011. Explain.

Answer 18

Proposed the dual-hormone hypothesis.

They claim high levels of testosterone lead to aggressive behaviour, but only when levels of cortisol are low.

When cortisol levels are high, testosterone’s influence on aggression is blocked.

Testosterone levels are not the only factor in aggressive behaviours.

They found that testosterone can affect how aggressive an individual feels but that they will not necessarily act on it.
It can therefore be concluded that testosterone levels may underpin the emotional response to a situation but that other factors such as: social experiences, upbringing, exposure to role models, or situational context, will affect whether the aggression felt influences the actual behaviour of the individual.

Question 19

Does testosterone equal aggression?

(Carre and Mehta)

Answer 19

No, as the research is very much correlational.

Question 20

Give an example of a co-variable explanation of aggression.

(Carre and Mehta).

Answer 20

E.g. violent criminals, perhaps exposed to aggression in role models and childhood.

Question 21

Give 3 extraneous variables within the hormonal explanation of aggression.

Answer 21

Serotonin.

Dopamine.

Genetics.

Question 22

Evaluate methodological problems with the hormonal mechanisms explanation for aggression.

Answer 22

Many laboratory experiments try to generalise to the natural environment.

E.g. blood samples, saliva samples.

Correlations – but good ethical reasons for this:
Much research is correlational, as it is unethical to alter human biochemistry.

Question 23

Evaluate human vs animal problems with the hormonal mechanisms explanation for aggression.

Answer 23

Generalisation is weaker, as non-human animals may not share the same biological structures.

Castration studies cannot be completed on humans, (other than sex-change studies).

Question 24

Evaluate determinism and reductionism within the hormonal mechanisms explanation for aggression.

Answer 24

Very reductionist.

Renders human behaviour lawful.

Biological defences for aggression could undermine the legal system.

Question 25

What other explanations should be considered alongside the hormonal mechanisms?

Answer 25

Social factors, upbringing.

Cognitive factors, processing the after-affects.

Mediating processes and the consequences.

Question 26

Testosterone and aggression are linked with…

Answer 26

Testosterone and aggression are linked with low levels of cortisol.