Muscle Insider
New member
By Rick Collins, Esq.
Q: Would giving extra testosterone to liberals make them into Republicans?
A: To answer that question, I turned to acclaimed researcher Paul J. Zak, Ph.D., professor of economics, psychology and management and director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies at Claremont Graduate University in California (pauljzak.com). Dr. Zak’s robust body of published work explores the realm where neuroscience impacts our everyday behaviors (check it out here: http://pauljzak.com/pressroom/). His 2012 book, The Moral Molecule, examines the role of the neurochemical oxytocin in human behaviors such as empathy, altruism, and morality. He has studied the effects of both oxytocin and the sex hormone testosterone on political party loyalties – with surprising results.
Testosterone (“T”) is a facilitator hormone; it rises to help us meet challenges, such as physical or mental competition. Higher T is associated with dominance, confidence, assertiveness, and energy. At the risk of over-generalizing, anecdotal experiences might support the association of defined traits and behaviors with political party affiliation. “More muscular males, self-directed and independent types, tend to skew more libertarian, Republican or conservative,” notes Dr. Zak. Those traits would suggest higher basal T levels than, say, liberal Democrats, who tend to favor policies of socioeconomic equity/more governmental control than those liking a hands off, survival of the fittest society.
So, would you expect Republican (“Red”) men to have higher basal T levels than Democrat (“Blue”) men? Dr. Zak and his colleagues decided to test this hypothesis and to take it a step further: Might administering testosterone influence self-described Democrats to shift to the political “Right” and be more likely to support Republican candidates?
In a study conducted during the 2011 U.S. presidential election season and currently under peer review for journal publication, 136 male college students were questioned in writing about their political preferences. Based on the strength of their party preference, those identifying as Red or Blue were classified into four groups: Strongly Affiliated Democrats, Weakly Affiliated Democrats, Strongly Affiliated Republicans, and Weakly Affiliated Republicans. Blood was drawn from all participants to test their basal T levels. Then they were given either a testosterone gel containing 10 grams of AndroGel or an identical-appearing placebo gel. The protocol was double-blind, so that neither the participants nor the experimenters knew which substance was provided. The next day, once again, T levels were tested, and the participants were questioned about their political preferences.
The findings? As far as baseline T levels, surprisingly, there was no significant difference between the average T levels of self-described Democrats and self-described Republicans. However, of the four groups, Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest basal levels (19% higher than Strongly Affiliated Democrats).
After testosterone treatment, average T levels increased by 64.6%. Did it affect political preferences? In the Strongly Affiliated Democrats, and both Republican groups, it did not. However, in the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, T administration reduced the average strength of existing party affiliation by a statistically significant 12.46% (in effect, they became less Blue). Warmth by Democrats for Republican candidates increased 18.2% (they became more Red). But this shift was driven only by the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, for whom the extra T increased their average warmth for Republican candidates by 45%!
Before we get to implications, let’s note some study limitations. The participants were college students, the Republican sample size was small, and the findings might be different for women or an older population. Also, of course, this was all hypothetical and no votes were actually cast. Lastly, it’s possible that the college students identifying as Weakly Affiliated Democrats were secretly Republicans all along, but consciously or subconsciously afraid to admit it to the researchers until some extra T emboldened them.
That said, there are some takeaways of note for those running political campaigns. Swing voters are key targets of political advertising because they are deemed most likely to be persuaded. “Our key finding, that T influenced political preferences for weakly affiliated Democrats, contributes to the analysis of political advertising and persuasion,” notes Dr. Zak. “Weakly affiliated Democrats were persuadable physiologically while strong Democrats and all Republicans were not, [indicating] that weakly affiliated Democrats are more likely to be swing voters than weakly affiliated Republicans.” The data suggests that “political advertising that increases T, when targeted at weakly affiliated Democrats, could be an effective strategy employed by Republican candidates.”1 As for why Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest baseline T levels, we’ll await more research by Dr. Zak or others.
Rick Collins, Esq., CSCS [https://rickcollins.com/] is the lawyer who members of the bodybuilding community and dietary supplement industry turn to when they need legal help or representation. [© Rick Collins, 2023. All rights reserved. For informational purposes only, not to be construed as legal or medical advice.]
Reference:
1. For examples, watching your favorite sports team win a game can boost saliva T concentrations
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9811365/), as can videos containing erotic or sexual imagery
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0306453085900411)(although how far
political advertising would be willing to go in this latter direction is open to question).
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMSSUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAY
GET OFFICIAL MD STUFFVISIT OUR STORE
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM YOUTUBE
By Rick Collins, Esq.
Q: Would giving extra testosterone to liberals make them into Republicans?
A: To answer that question, I turned to acclaimed researcher Paul J. Zak, Ph.D., professor of economics, psychology and management and director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies at Claremont Graduate University in California (pauljzak.com). Dr. Zak’s robust body of published work explores the realm where neuroscience impacts our everyday behaviors (check it out here: http://pauljzak.com/pressroom/). His 2012 book, The Moral Molecule, examines the role of the neurochemical oxytocin in human behaviors such as empathy, altruism, and morality. He has studied the effects of both oxytocin and the sex hormone testosterone on political party loyalties – with surprising results.
Testosterone (“T”) is a facilitator hormone; it rises to help us meet challenges, such as physical or mental competition. Higher T is associated with dominance, confidence, assertiveness, and energy. At the risk of over-generalizing, anecdotal experiences might support the association of defined traits and behaviors with political party affiliation. “More muscular males, self-directed and independent types, tend to skew more libertarian, Republican or conservative,” notes Dr. Zak. Those traits would suggest higher basal T levels than, say, liberal Democrats, who tend to favor policies of socioeconomic equity/more governmental control than those liking a hands off, survival of the fittest society.
So, would you expect Republican (“Red”) men to have higher basal T levels than Democrat (“Blue”) men? Dr. Zak and his colleagues decided to test this hypothesis and to take it a step further: Might administering testosterone influence self-described Democrats to shift to the political “Right” and be more likely to support Republican candidates?
In a study conducted during the 2011 U.S. presidential election season and currently under peer review for journal publication, 136 male college students were questioned in writing about their political preferences. Based on the strength of their party preference, those identifying as Red or Blue were classified into four groups: Strongly Affiliated Democrats, Weakly Affiliated Democrats, Strongly Affiliated Republicans, and Weakly Affiliated Republicans. Blood was drawn from all participants to test their basal T levels. Then they were given either a testosterone gel containing 10 grams of AndroGel or an identical-appearing placebo gel. The protocol was double-blind, so that neither the participants nor the experimenters knew which substance was provided. The next day, once again, T levels were tested, and the participants were questioned about their political preferences.
The findings? As far as baseline T levels, surprisingly, there was no significant difference between the average T levels of self-described Democrats and self-described Republicans. However, of the four groups, Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest basal levels (19% higher than Strongly Affiliated Democrats).
After testosterone treatment, average T levels increased by 64.6%. Did it affect political preferences? In the Strongly Affiliated Democrats, and both Republican groups, it did not. However, in the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, T administration reduced the average strength of existing party affiliation by a statistically significant 12.46% (in effect, they became less Blue). Warmth by Democrats for Republican candidates increased 18.2% (they became more Red). But this shift was driven only by the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, for whom the extra T increased their average warmth for Republican candidates by 45%!
Before we get to implications, let’s note some study limitations. The participants were college students, the Republican sample size was small, and the findings might be different for women or an older population. Also, of course, this was all hypothetical and no votes were actually cast. Lastly, it’s possible that the college students identifying as Weakly Affiliated Democrats were secretly Republicans all along, but consciously or subconsciously afraid to admit it to the researchers until some extra T emboldened them.
That said, there are some takeaways of note for those running political campaigns. Swing voters are key targets of political advertising because they are deemed most likely to be persuaded. “Our key finding, that T influenced political preferences for weakly affiliated Democrats, contributes to the analysis of political advertising and persuasion,” notes Dr. Zak. “Weakly affiliated Democrats were persuadable physiologically while strong Democrats and all Republicans were not, [indicating] that weakly affiliated Democrats are more likely to be swing voters than weakly affiliated Republicans.” The data suggests that “political advertising that increases T, when targeted at weakly affiliated Democrats, could be an effective strategy employed by Republican candidates.”1 As for why Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest baseline T levels, we’ll await more research by Dr. Zak or others.
Rick Collins, Esq., CSCS [https://rickcollins.com/] is the lawyer who members of the bodybuilding community and dietary supplement industry turn to when they need legal help or representation. [© Rick Collins, 2023. All rights reserved. For informational purposes only, not to be construed as legal or medical advice.]
Reference:
1. For examples, watching your favorite sports team win a game can boost saliva T concentrations
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9811365/), as can videos containing erotic or sexual imagery
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0306453085900411)(although how far
political advertising would be willing to go in this latter direction is open to question).
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMS
SUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAY
GET OFFICIAL MD STUFF
VISIT OUR STORE
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM
YOUTUBE
Click here to view the article.
Q: Would giving extra testosterone to liberals make them into Republicans?
A: To answer that question, I turned to acclaimed researcher Paul J. Zak, Ph.D., professor of economics, psychology and management and director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies at Claremont Graduate University in California (pauljzak.com). Dr. Zak’s robust body of published work explores the realm where neuroscience impacts our everyday behaviors (check it out here: http://pauljzak.com/pressroom/). His 2012 book, The Moral Molecule, examines the role of the neurochemical oxytocin in human behaviors such as empathy, altruism, and morality. He has studied the effects of both oxytocin and the sex hormone testosterone on political party loyalties – with surprising results.
Testosterone (“T”) is a facilitator hormone; it rises to help us meet challenges, such as physical or mental competition. Higher T is associated with dominance, confidence, assertiveness, and energy. At the risk of over-generalizing, anecdotal experiences might support the association of defined traits and behaviors with political party affiliation. “More muscular males, self-directed and independent types, tend to skew more libertarian, Republican or conservative,” notes Dr. Zak. Those traits would suggest higher basal T levels than, say, liberal Democrats, who tend to favor policies of socioeconomic equity/more governmental control than those liking a hands off, survival of the fittest society.
So, would you expect Republican (“Red”) men to have higher basal T levels than Democrat (“Blue”) men? Dr. Zak and his colleagues decided to test this hypothesis and to take it a step further: Might administering testosterone influence self-described Democrats to shift to the political “Right” and be more likely to support Republican candidates?
In a study conducted during the 2011 U.S. presidential election season and currently under peer review for journal publication, 136 male college students were questioned in writing about their political preferences. Based on the strength of their party preference, those identifying as Red or Blue were classified into four groups: Strongly Affiliated Democrats, Weakly Affiliated Democrats, Strongly Affiliated Republicans, and Weakly Affiliated Republicans. Blood was drawn from all participants to test their basal T levels. Then they were given either a testosterone gel containing 10 grams of AndroGel or an identical-appearing placebo gel. The protocol was double-blind, so that neither the participants nor the experimenters knew which substance was provided. The next day, once again, T levels were tested, and the participants were questioned about their political preferences.
The findings? As far as baseline T levels, surprisingly, there was no significant difference between the average T levels of self-described Democrats and self-described Republicans. However, of the four groups, Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest basal levels (19% higher than Strongly Affiliated Democrats).
After testosterone treatment, average T levels increased by 64.6%. Did it affect political preferences? In the Strongly Affiliated Democrats, and both Republican groups, it did not. However, in the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, T administration reduced the average strength of existing party affiliation by a statistically significant 12.46% (in effect, they became less Blue). Warmth by Democrats for Republican candidates increased 18.2% (they became more Red). But this shift was driven only by the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, for whom the extra T increased their average warmth for Republican candidates by 45%!
Before we get to implications, let’s note some study limitations. The participants were college students, the Republican sample size was small, and the findings might be different for women or an older population. Also, of course, this was all hypothetical and no votes were actually cast. Lastly, it’s possible that the college students identifying as Weakly Affiliated Democrats were secretly Republicans all along, but consciously or subconsciously afraid to admit it to the researchers until some extra T emboldened them.
That said, there are some takeaways of note for those running political campaigns. Swing voters are key targets of political advertising because they are deemed most likely to be persuaded. “Our key finding, that T influenced political preferences for weakly affiliated Democrats, contributes to the analysis of political advertising and persuasion,” notes Dr. Zak. “Weakly affiliated Democrats were persuadable physiologically while strong Democrats and all Republicans were not, [indicating] that weakly affiliated Democrats are more likely to be swing voters than weakly affiliated Republicans.” The data suggests that “political advertising that increases T, when targeted at weakly affiliated Democrats, could be an effective strategy employed by Republican candidates.”1 As for why Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest baseline T levels, we’ll await more research by Dr. Zak or others.
Rick Collins, Esq., CSCS [https://rickcollins.com/] is the lawyer who members of the bodybuilding community and dietary supplement industry turn to when they need legal help or representation. [© Rick Collins, 2023. All rights reserved. For informational purposes only, not to be construed as legal or medical advice.]
Reference:
1. For examples, watching your favorite sports team win a game can boost saliva T concentrations
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9811365/), as can videos containing erotic or sexual imagery
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0306453085900411)(although how far
political advertising would be willing to go in this latter direction is open to question).
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMSSUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAY
GET OFFICIAL MD STUFFVISIT OUR STORE
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM YOUTUBE
By Rick Collins, Esq.
Q: Would giving extra testosterone to liberals make them into Republicans?
A: To answer that question, I turned to acclaimed researcher Paul J. Zak, Ph.D., professor of economics, psychology and management and director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies at Claremont Graduate University in California (pauljzak.com). Dr. Zak’s robust body of published work explores the realm where neuroscience impacts our everyday behaviors (check it out here: http://pauljzak.com/pressroom/). His 2012 book, The Moral Molecule, examines the role of the neurochemical oxytocin in human behaviors such as empathy, altruism, and morality. He has studied the effects of both oxytocin and the sex hormone testosterone on political party loyalties – with surprising results.
Testosterone (“T”) is a facilitator hormone; it rises to help us meet challenges, such as physical or mental competition. Higher T is associated with dominance, confidence, assertiveness, and energy. At the risk of over-generalizing, anecdotal experiences might support the association of defined traits and behaviors with political party affiliation. “More muscular males, self-directed and independent types, tend to skew more libertarian, Republican or conservative,” notes Dr. Zak. Those traits would suggest higher basal T levels than, say, liberal Democrats, who tend to favor policies of socioeconomic equity/more governmental control than those liking a hands off, survival of the fittest society.
So, would you expect Republican (“Red”) men to have higher basal T levels than Democrat (“Blue”) men? Dr. Zak and his colleagues decided to test this hypothesis and to take it a step further: Might administering testosterone influence self-described Democrats to shift to the political “Right” and be more likely to support Republican candidates?
In a study conducted during the 2011 U.S. presidential election season and currently under peer review for journal publication, 136 male college students were questioned in writing about their political preferences. Based on the strength of their party preference, those identifying as Red or Blue were classified into four groups: Strongly Affiliated Democrats, Weakly Affiliated Democrats, Strongly Affiliated Republicans, and Weakly Affiliated Republicans. Blood was drawn from all participants to test their basal T levels. Then they were given either a testosterone gel containing 10 grams of AndroGel or an identical-appearing placebo gel. The protocol was double-blind, so that neither the participants nor the experimenters knew which substance was provided. The next day, once again, T levels were tested, and the participants were questioned about their political preferences.
The findings? As far as baseline T levels, surprisingly, there was no significant difference between the average T levels of self-described Democrats and self-described Republicans. However, of the four groups, Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest basal levels (19% higher than Strongly Affiliated Democrats).
After testosterone treatment, average T levels increased by 64.6%. Did it affect political preferences? In the Strongly Affiliated Democrats, and both Republican groups, it did not. However, in the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, T administration reduced the average strength of existing party affiliation by a statistically significant 12.46% (in effect, they became less Blue). Warmth by Democrats for Republican candidates increased 18.2% (they became more Red). But this shift was driven only by the Weakly Affiliated Democrats, for whom the extra T increased their average warmth for Republican candidates by 45%!
Before we get to implications, let’s note some study limitations. The participants were college students, the Republican sample size was small, and the findings might be different for women or an older population. Also, of course, this was all hypothetical and no votes were actually cast. Lastly, it’s possible that the college students identifying as Weakly Affiliated Democrats were secretly Republicans all along, but consciously or subconsciously afraid to admit it to the researchers until some extra T emboldened them.
That said, there are some takeaways of note for those running political campaigns. Swing voters are key targets of political advertising because they are deemed most likely to be persuaded. “Our key finding, that T influenced political preferences for weakly affiliated Democrats, contributes to the analysis of political advertising and persuasion,” notes Dr. Zak. “Weakly affiliated Democrats were persuadable physiologically while strong Democrats and all Republicans were not, [indicating] that weakly affiliated Democrats are more likely to be swing voters than weakly affiliated Republicans.” The data suggests that “political advertising that increases T, when targeted at weakly affiliated Democrats, could be an effective strategy employed by Republican candidates.”1 As for why Weakly Affiliated Democrats had the highest baseline T levels, we’ll await more research by Dr. Zak or others.
Rick Collins, Esq., CSCS [https://rickcollins.com/] is the lawyer who members of the bodybuilding community and dietary supplement industry turn to when they need legal help or representation. [© Rick Collins, 2023. All rights reserved. For informational purposes only, not to be construed as legal or medical advice.]
Reference:
1. For examples, watching your favorite sports team win a game can boost saliva T concentrations
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9811365/), as can videos containing erotic or sexual imagery
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0306453085900411)(although how far
political advertising would be willing to go in this latter direction is open to question).
DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMS
SUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAY
GET OFFICIAL MD STUFF
VISIT OUR STORE
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:
YOUTUBE
Click here to view the article.
