Ethnicity-related variation in sexual promiscuity, relationship status, and testosterone levels in men.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate potential ethnicity-related variation in men’s relationship status, sexual promiscuity, and testosterone levels. Data from two ethnically diverse subject populations were used. The first dataset included 302 male graduate students (age range: 23–36 years; M 28); the second dataset consisted of 77 male undergraduate and graduate students (age range: 18 –38 years; M 23). For both, we collected information on ethnicity (European American, African American, Hispanic, or Asian American), relationship status (single, in a short-term or long-term relationship, or married), and sexual promiscuity (number of lifetime sexual partners, number of one-night stands, extrapair sexual activity), in addition to measuring salivary testosterone concentrations. In both datasets testosterone levels were significantly higher in single men than in men in relationships but this difference was reversed in men of Asian American ethnicity. Asian American men had the lowest number of sexual partners, one-night stands, and extrapair sexual activity across ethnic groups. Moreover, among Asian Americans, men in relationships had a higher average number of sexual partners than single men. Our results indicate that to understand the association between relationship status and testosterone levels in men, ethnicity-related variation in sexual activity in single men and men in relationships must be taken into consideration.