Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and Hormones
We review the literature on aggression in women with an emphasis on laboratory experimentation and hormonal and brain mechanisms. Women tend to engage in more indirect forms of aggression (e.g., spreading rumors) than other types of aggression. In laboratory studies, women are less aggressive than m...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2018-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00081/full |
| _version_ | 1818532877272350720 |
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| author | Thomas F. Denson Siobhan M. O’Dean Khandis R. Blake Joanne R. Beames |
| author_facet | Thomas F. Denson Siobhan M. O’Dean Khandis R. Blake Joanne R. Beames |
| author_sort | Thomas F. Denson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We review the literature on aggression in women with an emphasis on laboratory experimentation and hormonal and brain mechanisms. Women tend to engage in more indirect forms of aggression (e.g., spreading rumors) than other types of aggression. In laboratory studies, women are less aggressive than men, but provocation attenuates this difference. In the real world, women are just as likely to aggress against their romantic partner as men are, but men cause more serious physical and psychological harm. A very small minority of women are also sexually violent. Women are susceptible to alcohol-related aggression, but this type of aggression may be limited to women high in trait aggression. Fear of being harmed is a robust inhibitor of direct aggression in women. There are too few studies and most are underpowered to detect unique neural mechanisms associated with aggression in women. Testosterone shows the same small, positive relationship with aggression in women as in men. The role of cortisol is unclear, although some evidence suggests that women who are high in testosterone and low in cortisol show heightened aggression. Under some circumstances, oxytocin may increase aggression by enhancing reactivity to provocation and simultaneously lowering perceptions of danger that normally inhibit many women from retaliating. There is some evidence that high levels of estradiol and progesterone are associated with low levels of aggression. We highlight that more gender-specific theory-driven hypothesis testing is needed with larger samples of women and aggression paradigms relevant to women. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T17:51:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bcb3e64f7540448eaf390ebceb37e17b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1662-5153 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T17:51:16Z |
| publishDate | 2018-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-bcb3e64f7540448eaf390ebceb37e17b2022-12-22T00:56:13ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience1662-51532018-05-011210.3389/fnbeh.2018.00081331733Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and HormonesThomas F. Denson0Siobhan M. O’Dean1Khandis R. Blake2Joanne R. Beames3School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaSchool of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaEvolution & Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaSchool of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaWe review the literature on aggression in women with an emphasis on laboratory experimentation and hormonal and brain mechanisms. Women tend to engage in more indirect forms of aggression (e.g., spreading rumors) than other types of aggression. In laboratory studies, women are less aggressive than men, but provocation attenuates this difference. In the real world, women are just as likely to aggress against their romantic partner as men are, but men cause more serious physical and psychological harm. A very small minority of women are also sexually violent. Women are susceptible to alcohol-related aggression, but this type of aggression may be limited to women high in trait aggression. Fear of being harmed is a robust inhibitor of direct aggression in women. There are too few studies and most are underpowered to detect unique neural mechanisms associated with aggression in women. Testosterone shows the same small, positive relationship with aggression in women as in men. The role of cortisol is unclear, although some evidence suggests that women who are high in testosterone and low in cortisol show heightened aggression. Under some circumstances, oxytocin may increase aggression by enhancing reactivity to provocation and simultaneously lowering perceptions of danger that normally inhibit many women from retaliating. There is some evidence that high levels of estradiol and progesterone are associated with low levels of aggression. We highlight that more gender-specific theory-driven hypothesis testing is needed with larger samples of women and aggression paradigms relevant to women.http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00081/fullwomenaggressionbrainhormonesintimate partner violence |
| spellingShingle | Thomas F. Denson Siobhan M. O’Dean Khandis R. Blake Joanne R. Beames Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and Hormones Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience women aggression brain hormones intimate partner violence |
| title | Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and Hormones |
| title_full | Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and Hormones |
| title_fullStr | Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and Hormones |
| title_full_unstemmed | Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and Hormones |
| title_short | Aggression in Women: Behavior, Brain and Hormones |
| title_sort | aggression in women behavior brain and hormones |
| topic | women aggression brain hormones intimate partner violence |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00081/full |
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