睾酮是一种由男性的或女性的卵巢分泌的激素，具有维持肌肉强度及质量、维持骨质密度及强度、提神及提升体能等作用。睾酮对男性的影响，。近日，来自欧洲和美国的一个研究小组发现，，也可以促进亲社会行为。这项研究成果发表于PNAS杂志上。

现代社会对睾酮的看法总是带着一点负面色彩，常常将它与男性的侵略性、粗鲁或不良行为联系在一起。但事实上，这个甾类激素对男性的作用可能比人们想象的更为复杂。在本研究中，科学家让注射睾酮或安慰剂的实验对象参与一场游戏，观察这种激素对他们行为的影响。

研究小组招募了40名男性志愿者——其中一半给予睾酮注射，另一半给予安慰剂。然后这些志愿者被要求参加一个名为“最后通牒博弈”的游戏。在这种博弈中，一名提议者向另一名响应者提出一种分配资源（钱财）的方案，如果响应者同意这一方案，则按照这种方案进行资源分配；如果不同意，则两人会什么都得不到。在本游戏中，志愿者需要通过分享、挥洒钱财来确保自己最终收益最大化。游戏通过两种方式进行，一组按照游戏预定规则进行，另一组分为两队竞赛。游戏最后，志愿者可以根据对手的公平性奖励或惩罚他们的对手，利用自己的奖金增加或者减少对手的收入。

研究小组观察比较给予睾酮和安慰剂的志愿者发现，那些接受睾酮注射的志愿者更倾向于反对方案并惩罚对手——这是意料之中的结果。但是令人惊讶的是，睾酮水平升高也让那些志愿者变得更加慷慨给予对手奖励，而且被认为更加公平。

研究人员认为，这种极端情况的发生可能是由于这种慷慨行为可以增强“社会地位”，从而表现出“亲社会”行为。这项研究结果不同于单纯地将睾酮和侵略性联系在一起，而是提出了睾酮在驱使社会地位增强行为中存在一个更复杂的作用。

备注：本文编译自Medical Xpress网站，原标题：“Testosterone found to increase both social and antisocial behavior in men”

原文信息

Testosterone causes both prosocial and antisocial status-enhancing behaviors in human males

10.1073/pnas.1608085113

Although popular discussion of testosterone’s influence on males often centers on aggression and antisocial behavior, contemporary theorists have proposed that it instead enhances behaviors involved in obtaining and maintaining a high social status. Two central distinguishing but untested predictions of this theory are that testosterone selectively increases status-relevant aggressive behaviors, such as responses to provocation, but that it also promotes nonaggressive behaviors, such as generosity toward others, when they are appropriate for increasing status. Here, we tested these hypotheses in healthy young males by injecting testosterone enanthate or a placebo in a double-blind, between-subjects, randomized design (n = 40). Participants played a version of the Ultimatum Game that was modified so that, having accepted or rejected an offer from the proposer, participants then had the opportunity to punish or reward the proposer at a proportionate cost to themselves. We found that participants treated with testosterone were more likely to punish the proposer and that higher testosterone levels were specifically associated with increased punishment of proposers who made unfair offers, indicating that testosterone indeed potentiates aggressive responses to provocation. Furthermore, when participants administered testosterone received large offers, they were more likely to reward the proposer and also chose rewards of greater magnitude. This increased generosity in the absence of provocation indicates that testosterone can also cause prosocial behaviors that are appropriate for increasing status. These findings are inconsistent with a simple relationship between testosterone and aggression and provide causal evidence for a more complex role for testosterone in driving status-enhancing behaviors in males.

来源：生物探索

编辑：格格

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