Anger is commonly referred to in the context of aggressive behaviors. However, little is known about more nuanced effects of this emotion on behavior, nor its neural correlates as a subjective feeling state. For instance, several studies suggest that angry people, in contrast to anxious individuals, perceive risks optimistically. It remains unknown whether these opposing effects of trait anxiety and trait anger on risk perceptions manifest in a direct behavioral measure of risk taking. Our first experiment showed, as predicted, that high trait anxiety was associated with pessimism, whereas anger exerted an optimistic bias on likelihood perceptions. However, these biases did not translate into differences in risk taking behavior. Instead of optimism, impulsivity was highlighted as a mediator of risk proneness in individuals who tend to express anger. A second project investigated the neural basis of anger as an affective state elicited by emotionally evocative social scenes. Participants' attention was directed towards transgressors or their victim, which elicited feelings of anger and sadness respectively. These distinct emotions were associated with differential activity patterns in regions related to affective processing; the amygdala, insula and subgenual anterior cingulate cortex. Individual differences in trait empathy emerged as strong modulators of these activity patterns. In contrast, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex response to transgressors versus victims correlated positively with an individual's tendency to express anger, suggesting a role of this region in the regulation of angry feelings.

This research explores whether male risk taking emerges as a sexual display strategy in the presence of attractive women. Experiments 1 to 3 explored whether young males reported and engaged in more risk taking after viewing pictures of highly attractive females. Possible self-control mechanisms were investigated via working memory, reversal learning, and Stroop tasks. In addition, second to fourth digit ratio (2D:4D) was measured as a proxy for individual differences in testosterone. Viewing pictures of highly attractive females led to greater self-reported risk-taking. 2D:4D was found to moderate the effect on risk-taking behaviours, with increases for high, but decreases for low testosterone males. Digit ratio also moderated the effects observed on the Stroop and reversal learning tasks. Experiments 4 and 5 extended these findings to examine how power interacts with testosterone to influence risk taking and inhibitory control. As testosterone is as-sociated with the pursuit of power and status (Dabbs & Dabbs, 2000), high testoster-one individuals primed with power were expected to have little reason to disrupt the status quo and thus should be risk-avoidant. Conversely, high-testosterone individuals primed with low power were expected to use risk taking as a vehicle for pursuing po-tential gains to their status and resources. The findings from two experiments are con-sistent with these predictions. In Experiment 1, higher testosterone males (as indicated by second–fourth digit ratio) showed greater risk-taking when primed with low power. Experiment 2 replicated this effect and also showed that when primed with high power, higher testosterone males took fewer risks. The influence of power on Stroop performance was also moderated by individual differences in testosterone. Par-ticipants primed with high power showed better Stroop performance if they were lower in testosterone, whereas participants primed with low power showed better Stroop performance if they were higher in testosterone. These results suggest that greater executive control accompanies but does not underlie enhanced risk taking, caused by testosterone and power. Finally, results from a field experiment (Experiment 6) with skateboarders demon-strate that physical risk taking by young male skateboarders increases in the presence of an attractive female. This increased risk taking led to more successes but also more crash landings in front of the female observer. Mediational analyses suggest that this increase in risk taking is caused in part by elevated testosterone levels of men who performed in front of the attractive female. In addition, skateboarders’ risk taking was predicted by their performance on a reversal-learning task, reversal-learning perform-ance was disrupted by the presence of the attractive female, and the female’s presence moderated the observed relationship between risk taking and reversal learning. These results suggest that men use physical risk taking as a sexual display strategy, and they provide suggestive evidence regarding possible hormonal and neural mechanisms.

This research explores whether male risk taking emerges as a sexual display strategy in the presence of attractive women. Experiments 1 to 3 explored whether young males reported and engaged in more risk taking after viewing pictures of highly attractive females. Possible self-control mechanisms were investigated via working memory, reversal learning, and Stroop tasks. In addition, second to fourth digit ratio (2D:4D) was measured as a proxy for individual differences in testosterone. Viewing pictures of highly attractive females led to greater self-reported risk-taking. 2D:4D was found to moderate the effect on risk-taking behaviours, with increases for high, but decreases for low testosterone males. Digit ratio also moderated the effects observed on the Stroop and reversal learning tasks. Experiments 4 and 5 extended these findings to examine how power interacts with testosterone to influence risk taking and inhibitory control. As testosterone is as-sociated with the pursuit of power and status (Dabbs & Dabbs, 2000), high testoster-one individuals primed with power were expected to have little reason to disrupt the status quo and thus should be risk-avoidant. Conversely, high-testosterone individuals primed with low power were expected to use risk taking as a vehicle for pursuing po-tential gains to their status and resources. The findings from two experiments are con-sistent with these predictions. In Experiment 1, higher testosterone males (as indicated by second–fourth digit ratio) showed greater risk-taking when primed with low power. Experiment 2 replicated this effect and also showed that when primed with high power, higher testosterone males took fewer risks. The influence of power on Stroop performance was also moderated by individual differences in testosterone. Par-ticipants primed with high power showed better Stroop performance if they were lower in testosterone, whereas participants primed with low power showed better Stroop performance if they were higher in testosterone. These results suggest that greater executive control accompanies but does not underlie enhanced risk taking, caused by testosterone and power. Finally, results from a field experiment (Experiment 6) with skateboarders demon-strate that physical risk taking by young male skateboarders increases in the presence of an attractive female. This increased risk taking led to more successes but also more crash landings in front of the female observer. Mediational analyses suggest that this increase in risk taking is caused in part by elevated testosterone levels of men who performed in front of the attractive female. In addition, skateboarders’ risk taking was predicted by their performance on a reversal-learning task, reversal-learning perform-ance was disrupted by the presence of the attractive female, and the female’s presence moderated the observed relationship between risk taking and reversal learning. These results suggest that men use physical risk taking as a sexual display strategy, and they provide suggestive evidence regarding possible hormonal and neural mechanisms.

This research explores whether male risk taking emerges as a sexual display strategy in the presence of attractive women. Experiments 1 to 3 explored whether young males reported and engaged in more risk taking after viewing pictures of highly attractive females. Possible self-control mechanisms were investigated via working memory, reversal learning, and Stroop tasks. In addition, second to fourth digit ratio (2D:4D) was measured as a proxy for individual differences in testosterone. Viewing pictures of highly attractive females led to greater self-reported risk-taking. 2D:4D was found to moderate the effect on risk-taking behaviours, with increases for high, but decreases for low testosterone males. Digit ratio also moderated the effects observed on the Stroop and reversal learning tasks. Experiments 4 and 5 extended these findings to examine how power interacts with testosterone to influence risk taking and inhibitory control. As testosterone is as-sociated with the pursuit of power and status (Dabbs & Dabbs, 2000), high testoster-one individuals primed with power were expected to have little reason to disrupt the status quo and thus should be risk-avoidant. Conversely, high-testosterone individuals primed with low power were expected to use risk taking as a vehicle for pursuing po-tential gains to their status and resources. The findings from two experiments are con-sistent with these predictions. In Experiment 1, higher testosterone males (as indicated by second–fourth digit ratio) showed greater risk-taking when primed with low power. Experiment 2 replicated this effect and also showed that when primed with high power, higher testosterone males took fewer risks. The influence of power on Stroop performance was also moderated by individual differences in testosterone. Par-ticipants primed with high power showed better Stroop performance if they were lower in testosterone, whereas participants primed with low power showed better Stroop performance if they were higher in testosterone. These results suggest that greater executive control accompanies but does not underlie enhanced risk taking, caused by testosterone and power. Finally, results from a field experiment (Experiment 6) with skateboarders demon-strate that physical risk taking by young male skateboarders increases in the presence of an attractive female. This increased risk taking led to more successes but also more crash landings in front of the female observer. Mediational analyses suggest that this increase in risk taking is caused in part by elevated testosterone levels of men who performed in front of the attractive female. In addition, skateboarders’ risk taking was predicted by their performance on a reversal-learning task, reversal-learning perform-ance was disrupted by the presence of the attractive female, and the female’s presence moderated the observed relationship between risk taking and reversal learning. These results suggest that men use physical risk taking as a sexual display strategy, and they provide suggestive evidence regarding possible hormonal and neural mechanisms.

Thesis (M.A.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 121-123). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

Thesis (M. P. H.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wyoming, 2005. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Nov. 14, 2007). Includes bibliographical references (p. 51-55).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Toronto, 2005.

Thesis (M. P. H.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Murdoch University, 2006. / Thesis submitted to the Division of Health Sciences. Bibliography: leaves 150-168.