Testosterone and Men's Marriages

Abstract

It is hypothesized that testosterone which is linked with aggressive behavior may also adversely affect marriage. Men with high testosterone levels may carry over contentious and hostile behavior to relations with the opposite sex. The outcomes possible are difficulty in finding someone to marry difficulty in maintaining a marriage (which ends in divorce) or maintaining a poor quality marriage. Sociological theory is reviewed. Sample subjects were former servicemen who served during 1965-71 of which 50% served in Vietnam. The men were representative of the US population for race and education. Measures of marital quality included questions about the stability of marriage and specific questions on the party closest to the subject the ability to discuss problems with ones wife and the frequency with which it is done and with whom ones wife discussed her problems. Age was controlled because testosterone decreases with age opportunities for marriage and divorce decrease with age and marital quality and instability vary by age. Socioeconomic variables included years of education household income and occupational status. A poor marriage material scale was constructed based on alcohol abuse being in trouble with the law and inability to hold a job. For dichotomous variables a prohibit analysis was conducted; for the quality of interaction scale analysis ordinary least squares was used. The findings were that men with higher testosterone are less likely to marry and more likely to divorce (43%). Within marriage there is a greater likelihood of men leaving home because of not getting along with their wives (31%) having extramarital sex (38%) hitting or throwing things at their wives (12%) and experiencing a lower quality of marital interaction. Men with midrange levels are more likely to report lower marital success. The likelihood of not marrying at all is 50% higher for men just 1 standard deviation above the mean compared with those 1 standard deviation below the mean. 3 models were tested. Testosterone is negatively related to age and socioeconomic status and positively related to the poor marriage material variables. Testosterone medicates the effect of age on marital adversity and limits occupational achievement. Poor marriage material also adds to the equation. The conclusion is that marital success models should include testosterone production. Gender role context and impulse control are also expected to contribute to the model of marital success. Caution is urged because of missing information on wives hormone levels and subjects home environment.