Title Digit ratio (2D : 4D) and prosocial behaviour in economic games: no direct correlation with generosity, bargaining or trust-related behaviours
Authors BRAÑAS GARZA, PABLO ERNESTO, Espín A.M. , García-Muñoz T. , Kovárík J.
External publication No
Means Biol Lett
Scope Article
Nature Científica
JCR Quartile 2
SJR Quartile 1
JCR Impact 2.86900
SJR Impact 1.65100
Web https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85071647906&doi=10.1098%2frsbl.2019.0185&partnerID=40&md5=2a8e42bb7cfca01d1f2ff92069645988
Publication date 28/08/2019
ISI 000488590300001
Scopus Id 2-s2.0-85071647906
DOI 10.1098/rsbl.2019.0185
Abstract Prenatal exposure to sex hormones exerts organizational effects on the brain which have observable behavioural correlates in adult life. There are reasons to expect that social behaviours-fundamental for the evolutionary success of humans-might be related to biological factors such as prenatal sex hormone exposure. Nevertheless, the existing literature is inconclusive as to whether and how prenatal exposure to testosterone and oestrogen, proxied by the second-to-fourth digit ratio (2D : 4D), may predict non-selfish behaviour. Here, we investigate this question using economic experiments with real monetary stakes and analyse five different dimensions of social behaviour in a comparatively large sample of Caucasian participants (n = 560). For both males and females, our results show no robust association between right- or left-hand 2D : 4D and generosity, bargaining or trust-related behaviours. Moreover, no differences in behaviour were found according to sex. We conclude that there is no direct correlation between 2D : 4D and these social behaviours.
Keywords 2D : 4D; digit ratio; fairness; social behaviour; testosterone
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