When asked what role testosterone plays in regulating the
behavior of an adult male most people would likely mention aggression and
related behaviors. Few people would be
likely to mention parental care. While
few people would realize it, testosterone is a hormone that is commonly
associated with parental care in male members of many different species. Conventional thought among endocrinologists
posits that testosterone and paternal care go hand in hand. Specifically, high testosterone is typically
seen as a negative characteristic in fathers because it leads to aggressive
behaviors, risky behavior, and general unhealthy actions all of which are not
desirable in a father figure. Therefore,
it has been determined that low testosterone is the preferable standard for
fathers. In a 2011 study van Anders, Tolman,
and Volling examined how infants can influence testosterone levels in
males. These scientists were interested
in seeing how baby cries influenced testosterone levels in young males, and how
the opportunity to engage in nurturing behaviors further influence the
relationship between infant cries and testosterone levels.
The
researchers recruited 55 young males from a university participant pool, of
these 55 males four were fathers. In addition to the human participants the
researchers used a Real Care Baby II-Plus baby doll as a stand in for an
authentic infant. These dolls are built
to resemble infants and can be programed to make realistic infant noises. The head researcher happened to have an
infant while conducting this study and found that members of the lab regularly
mistook the baby doll for her child. The
55 men were introduced to one of four scenarios. In all four scenarios the men were in the
scenarios for 10 min and ended with an oral swab for testosterone levels. One group of men were put into a room and
asked to flip through one of two books of scenic photography. Another group of males were put into a room
with the baby doll and were presented with the baby crying sounds but were
instructed not to interact with the doll.
A third group was presented with
cries but were instructed to interact with the doll and stop the crying. Lastly, the fourth group were presented with
a crying baby doll but the doll was programed to either not respond to the
efforts of the participant to stop the crying or to increase its rate of
crying. The researchers found striking
results from these four conditions.
Men
who were presented with the books for ten minutes predictably showed no change
in testosterone. The men who were
presented with the doll but were not allowed to intervene showed an increase in
testosterone. Conversely, the men who
were allowed to engage in nurturing behaviors towards the doll showed a
decrease in testosterone. Lastly, the
men who had no effect on the behavior of the doll had intermediate changes in
testosterone. So what do all of these
results mean for young fathers?
The
increase in testosterone following exposure to infant cries without opportunity
to intervene does not necessarily mean that fathers who cannot help their child
become aggressive when they can’t help their child. Rather this study shows that how we interact
with others has an effect on our hormone levels. These changes likely serve to prepare us for
the interactive behaviors that are likely to come with interacting with
others. For instance, the decrease in
testosterone associated with nurturing care of an infant helps men reach the
low testosterone levels that are associated with proper paternal care. On the other hand, an increase in
testosterone in a situation where a man cannot help his infant likely leads to
a heightened state of arousal that will help deal with whatever is preventing
the care of the infant. In conclusion,
fathers everywhere should be proud that they are so in tune with the needs of
their infants that the mere sound of their infant crying is a powerful enough
stimuli to elicit a change in their endocrine levels. Furthermore, we should all be interested in
knowing that how we interact with others and respond to their needs can also be
a powerful enough stimuli to change our various hormone levels. -Dan Miller
van Anders, S., Tolman, R., & Volling, B., (2012). Baby cries and nurtruance affect testosterone in men. Hormones and Behavior. 61, 31-36.
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