Hormonal Mechanisms for Regulation of Aggression in Human Coalitions

Coalitions and alliances are core aspects of human behavior. All societies recognize alliances among communities, usually based in part on kinship and marriage. Aggression between groups is ubiquitous, often deadly, fueled by revenge, and can have devastating effects on general human welfare. Given...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Human nature (Hawthorne, N.Y.) N.Y.), 2012-03, Vol.23 (1), p.68-88
Main Authors: Flinn, Mark V., Ponzi, Davide, Muehlenbein, Michael P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adolescents
Adult
Aggression
Aggression - physiology
Aggressiveness
Alliance
Alliances
Analysis
Animals
Anthropology
Behavior
Behavioral biology
Behavioral Sciences
Biological Evolution
Biological Psychology
Child
Coalitions
Competitive Behavior - physiology
Cooperative Behavior
Corticosteroids
Cultural Evolution
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Evolution
Evolutionary biology
Family
Female
Friends
Friendship
Hominidae - psychology
Humans
Hydrocortisone - metabolism
Interpersonal Relations
Male
Males
Middle Aged
Models, Psychological
Neurosecretory Systems - physiology
Pair Bond
Pan troglodytes - psychology
Reciprocity
Regulation
Rural Population
Saliva - chemistry
Social Response
Social Sciences
Sports
Testosterone
Testosterone - metabolism
Testosterone - physiology
Young Adult
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Summary:Coalitions and alliances are core aspects of human behavior. All societies recognize alliances among communities, usually based in part on kinship and marriage. Aggression between groups is ubiquitous, often deadly, fueled by revenge, and can have devastating effects on general human welfare. Given its significance, it is surprising how little we know about the neurobiological and hormonal mechanisms that underpin human coalitionary behavior. Here we first briefly review a model of human coalitionary behavior based on a process of runaway social selection. We then present several exploratory analyses of neuroendocrine responses to coalitionary social events in a rural Dominican community, with the objective of understanding differences between in-group and out-group competition in adult and adolescent males. Our analyses indicate: (1) adult and adolescent males do not elevate testosterone when they defeat their friends, but they do elevate testosterone when they defeat outsiders; (2) pre-competition testosterone and cortisol levels are negatively associated with strength of coalitionary ties; and (3) adult males usually elevate testosterone when interacting with adult women who are potential mates, but in a striking reversal, they have lower testosterone if the woman is a conjugal partner of a close friend. These naturalistic studies hint that reciprocity, dampening of aggression, and competition among friends and allies may be biologically embedded in unique ways among humans.
ISSN:1045-6767
1936-4776
DOI:10.1007/s12110-012-9135-y