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Updated: Jun 1, 2026

Combining Behavioral Endocrinology and Experimental Economics: Testosterone and Social Decision Making
Published on: March 2, 2011
Testosterone and romance: the association of testosterone with relationship commitment and satisfaction in
Ann E Caldwell Hooper1, Steven W Gangestad, Melissa Emery Thompson
1Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, 87131, USA. anncwell@unm.edu
Objectives:
The current study extends previous research on testosterone (T) and mating effort by examining whether relationship commitment and satisfaction explain variance in T beyond relationship status alone.
Methods:
Salivary testosterone and self-reported assessments of relationship commitment and satisfaction were assessed among 90 heterosexual men and women (age M = 23.57) in a cross-sectional community sample.
Results:
Relationship commitment was significantly related to T among men (P < 0.01), with increasing levels of commitment predicting lower T, even among paired men (P < 0.05). In contrast, relationship commitment was not related to women's T (P > 0.05). Controlling for relationship commitment, satisfaction did not predict T levels in men or women (P's > 0.18).
Conclusions:
The association of increasing relationship commitment with reduced T levels in men confirms and extends prior research linking T with mating effort. Together with previous research, this study suggests that T does not vary with relationship commitment or quality in monogamous, heterosexual women.
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