TY - JOUR

T1 - Revisiting the Relation Between Steroid Hormones and Unethicality in an Exploratory, Longitudinal Study With Female Participants

AU - Stern, Julia

AU - Schild, Christoph

AU - Zettler, Ingo

N1 - Funding Information: The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This research was funded by grants from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation; project number 254142454 / GRK 2070) to J.S. as well as by the Carlsberg Foundation (CF16-0444) to I.Z. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

PY - 2024

Y1 - 2024

N2 - Research on the relation between hormones and unethical behaviors and tendencies has provided mixed results, hindering the understanding of the potential biological regulation of unethical behaviors and tendencies. We conducted an exploratory, longitudinal study (N = 257 women) allowing to estimate relations between, on the one hand, steroid hormones (testosterone, cortisol, estradiol, and progesterone) and conception probability and, on the other hand, a broad variety of measures related to unethicality (self-reported personality variables, cheating in committed relationships, self-serving economic dishonesty in a behavioral task, namely, the mind game). Contrary to theoretical assumptions of and results from some previous studies, we find no consistent relation between hormones and unethical behavior or tendencies in the majority of analyses. Yet, some small, exploratory associations emerged that call for (preregistered) replications, before more firm conclusions can be made.

AB - Research on the relation between hormones and unethical behaviors and tendencies has provided mixed results, hindering the understanding of the potential biological regulation of unethical behaviors and tendencies. We conducted an exploratory, longitudinal study (N = 257 women) allowing to estimate relations between, on the one hand, steroid hormones (testosterone, cortisol, estradiol, and progesterone) and conception probability and, on the other hand, a broad variety of measures related to unethicality (self-reported personality variables, cheating in committed relationships, self-serving economic dishonesty in a behavioral task, namely, the mind game). Contrary to theoretical assumptions of and results from some previous studies, we find no consistent relation between hormones and unethical behavior or tendencies in the majority of analyses. Yet, some small, exploratory associations emerged that call for (preregistered) replications, before more firm conclusions can be made.

KW - cheating

KW - dishonesty

KW - hormones

KW - ovulatory cycle

KW - unethical behaviors

U2 - 10.1177/01461672231199961

DO - 10.1177/01461672231199961

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 37746909

AN - SCOPUS:85172676756

JO - Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

JF - Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

SN - 0146-1672

ER -