Effects of Increased Testosterone Secretion on the Behavior of Adult Male Rhesus Living in a Social Group

Abstract

Selected members of an all-male social group of rhesus monkeys were treated with twice-weekly injections of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) to determine the effects of the consequently increased androgen secretion on social behavior. Radioimmunoassay of blood samples confirmed significant increases in serum testosterone levels in each of 4 subjects, but only 3 of these showed significant behavioral changes. The basic social structure of the group, including the dominance hierarchy, was not disrupted by the treatment with HCG. Rather, the behavioral changes which did occur appeared to be intensifications of previously existing social relationship.