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Behavioral Endocrinology: an Emerging Discipline: How Hormones Affectand Are Affected Bybehavior Is a Subject of Increasing Inte Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society Behavioral Endocrinology: An Emerging Discipline: How hormones affect—and are affected by—behavior is a subject of increasing interest to students of human and animal behavior Author(s): Frank A. Beach Source: American Scientist, Vol. 63, No. 2 (March-April 1975), pp. 178-187 Published by: Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27845362 . Accessed: 21/05/2013 16:09 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to American Scientist. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 147.26.169.56 on Tue, 21 May 2013 16:09:08 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Franka. Beach Behavioral Endocrinology: An Emerging Discipline How hormones affect?and are affected by? behavior is a subject of increasing interest to students of human and animal behavior The first experiment in behavioral the concept of hormones as "chemi in covariation is the rule?which is endocrinology was performed in cal messengers" was proposed and to say the existence of correlations 1849 at the University of G?ttingen the science of endocrinology was involves variables other than just when Professor A. A. Berthold cas born. From its infancy, specialists the hormone and the behavior trated cockerels and observed the in the new field maintained a genu under examination. For example, well-known changes always pro ine if peripheral interest in endo administration of small amounts of duced by such an operation, in crine effects on behavior; but for estrogen induces sexual receptivity cluding atrophy of the comb and half a century progress in this par in female but not in male rats; and spurs, cessation of crowing, and loss ticular aspect of endocrinology was testosterone stimulates male birds of sexual interest in hens. Bert slow, and only during the last fif to attack other males but not to hold's original contribution was the teen years has its development aggress against females. discovery that these postoperative been so dramatically accelerated changes could be prevented if he that a new discipline seems aborn The interactions and interdepen returned a single testis to the bird's ing. It is too early for general laws dencies which constitute the fourth body cavity where it would have no or comprehensive theories, but a problem area are numerous, com connections with the nervous sys few organizing principles seem to plex, and representative of the most tem but could establish an ade be crystallizing out of the accumu dynamic aspects of behavioral en quate blood supply. He concluded lating evidence, and research has docrinology. They reflect the fact that "the testes release something progressed far enough to show that many hormone-behavior rela into the blood that maintains male where the important problems lie tionships are reciprocal or linked in behavior and the secondary sex and what the principal methods are other ways. Stimuli aroused by be characters" (Turner and Bagnara by which they are likely to be havior sometimes feed back into 1971). solved. the brain and thence to the endo crine system, where they excite or The mysterious "something" was The major problems or problem inhibit the secretion of hormones, the hormone testosterone, but fifty areas discernible today can be clas which in turn exert additional ef years and more were to pass before sified in four interrelated categories fects on behavior. (Beach 1974). Covariation refers to correlations between endocrinologi Covariation Frank A. Beach is Professor of Psychology at cal and behavioral events. The first the University of California, Berkeley. After step in analyzing any correlation is Most of our information about co a Ph.D. in at the Uni obtaining psychology to determine its reliability or con variation of hormones and behavior versity of Chicago in 1940, he worked as As sistency; only after this is estab has come from three sources: di sistant Curator and Chairman of the De (1) partment of Animal Behavior at the Ameri lished is the problem of causality agnosis and treatment of endocrine can Museum of Natural History. He then examined. As soon as the reliability and behavorial pathology, (2) study 10 in the spent years Department of Psy of a correlation has been quanti of behavioral changes occurring in chology at Yale before going to University fied, the next task is to identify the concert with normal fluctuations in Berkeley in 1958. A member of the Ameri mechanisms the concentration of hor can Philosophical Society and the National mediating involved, specific Academy of Sciences, Dr. Beach has re thus assuring the existence of a mones, and (3) experimentation in ceived many awards for his research. His causal relationship and increasing the laboratory, clinic, and field. current work centers on sex in differences our understanding of how the hor the behavior animals and humans and of mone's behavioral are Glandular malfunction with their causes. This article is based on the consequences behav Kenneth Craik Memorial Lecture at St. brought about. ioral consequences is dramatically Johns College, Cambridge University. A illustrated: by the masculinization detailed version includes more, (Beach 1974) Research in behavioral endocrinolo of baby girls which occurs when de a comprehensive bibliography and detailed gy has progressed far enough to fective adrenal glands of the fetus documentation for general statements in show that instances of covariation secrete excessive amounts of male cluded here. Address: Department of Psy are chology, University of California, Berkeley, infinite but simple one-to-one hormone during pregnancy. The re CA 94720. relationships are rare. Contingency sulting pathological condition, 178 American Scientist, Volume 63 This content downloaded from 147.26.169.56 on Tue, 21 May 2013 16:09:08 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions known as congenital adrenal hyper female's behavior changes radically plasia or the adrenogenital syn as her hormonal tides ebb and flow. drome (AGS), includes modifica A woman's cycle, like that of most tion of the external but not the in other primates, is marked by regu ternal sex organs, so that some af lar periods of menstrual bleeding, flicted girls are born with a penis but otherwise it is quite similar to rather than a vagina. The genital the "estrous cycles" of lower mam anomaly can be surgically correct mals and tends to be accompanied ed, but some authorities believe by characteristic psychological or prenatal masculinization also af behavioral changes. Psychiatrists at fects the brain and thus influences the Stanford Medical School report sexually dimorphic behavior. that nearly one-third of American women experience some degree of Figure 1. An example of the normal varia emotional distress Drs. John Money, of Johns Hopkins tion in the endocrine system which is coinci (irritability, University Medical School, and dent with important behavioral changes is mood swings, depression, tension) testosterone in of Anke Ehrhardt, of the State Uni the increase in the blood just before or during menstruation, human males during adolescence (August, versity of New York, compared a when the ovary is producing almost Grumbach, and Kaplan 1972). The colored number of AGS with normal no hormones at all and the individ girls segment denotes the critical range for the a girls the same age and found that onset of nocturnal emission, masturbation, ual is therefore in temporary state during childhood the former were dating, and first infatuation in the majority of withdrawal or deficiency of adolescent males "psychologically masculinized" ac (Ramsey 1943; Kephart (Hamburg, Moos, and Yalom 1973). cording to the following criteria 1968). (Money and Ehrhardt 1968): (1) From earliest infancy they pre Secretion of estrogen peaks at mid ferred boys' toys to dolls and other cycle, and this is the time when fe male hormone, but can be induced (2) they pre male animals are sexually attrac "girls' playthings," in most cases if testosterone treat ferred to play with boys and not tive, meaning that their stimulus ment is begun while the boy is still with other girls, (3) they were so value formales is high; sexually re in the adolescent age range. cially competitive in boys' groups, ceptive, meaning that they will co (4) they preferred boys' wearing ap operate in coition; and sexually In all mammals the ovaries secrete parel to frilly dresses, (5) they ex proceptive, meaning that they will estrogen and progesterone periodi pressed little or no interest in han assume initiative in seeking, solicit cally, although the periods may dling or caring for babies, (6) they ing, and stimulating males. Attrac come only once a year, as in sea rarely daydreamed of marriage and tivity and receptivity are familiar sonal breeders, or every four days, family but often of achievement concepts, but female proceptivity is as in the hamster. In all species the and careers, and (7) they consid often neglected, especially by male ered themselves and were consid investigators arid theorists. The ef ered by others to be tomboys. fect of ovarian hormones on male Money and Ehrhardt describe these seeking behavior in female dogs is manifestations of masculinization 35r shown in Figure 2, based on a study to be obvious but transitory, con Experimental females in which the roving bitch was free no to 30 to visit tethered of either sex stituting barrier the develop in estrus dogs ment of normal heterosexual orien when she was in heat (estrus) and tation in adolescence or successful when she was not (anestrus) (Le in anestrus was more functioning as a wife and mother in Boeuf 1967).
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