The Competitive Brain on Gender and Winning
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word ‘testosterone’? Maleness? A manly man?! That is a valid response because testosterone is a steroid hormone that stimulates male secondary sexual characteristics – produced mainly in the testes. But here a little twist that we don’t usually think of: testosterone is also produced in the ovaries and adrenal cortex. That means that both sexes produce testosterone. Other than a simple biology lesson what is this all about? Testosterone responds to competition. Assumptions then are that men are more competitive than women – in athletics to the board room.
Men and women’s brains are physically different in structure, chemicals and function. Men and women’s brains respond differently to stress and process emotional memories in different ways. These differences have supported the beliefs that men are more competitive and women more collaborative. One of the underlying beliefs is that women are less competitive due to greater effects of estrogen and oxytocin (the bonding chemical) and less testosterone than the male brain. This statement doesn’t take into account that brain chemicals vary from person to person, as do the levels of competitiveness. The Stockholm School of Economics wanted to determine if men tend to perform better than women in competition. The research team wanted to examine whether gender differences were ‘hard-wired’ or biased by cultural norms. The tests were conducted in Sweden, ranked the 4th most gender equal country in the world. Seven to 10-year olds competed in traditional feminine and masculine activities. The results showed that across all of the different activities, girls and boys were equally competitive. Professor Gina Rippon, a cognitive neuroscientist at Ashton University wrote “the brains of a newborn boy and girl are very similar. Any small differences in brain circuitry come through the ‘drip, drip’ of gender stereotyping, the result of environment, not biology.”
Researchers at Aalto University studied the physiological responses to competitive and cooperative play. They were investigating the emotions of how males and females are motivated to behave. They discovered that men did enjoy competition over cooperation but females enjoyed both competition and cooperation equally. They found that even though men do enjoy competition more than cooperation, this might actually be a consequence from gender expectations rather than deep-seated differences. Testosterone is stimulated through competition. Women have been discouraged from competing while men are encouraged by way of gender norms. In an experiment set-up to determine how wielding power (competition) in stereotypically masculine and feminine ways through: (1) Stereotypical performance increases testosterone regardless of how it is performed and, (2) wielding power in masculine but not feminine ways increase testosterone. These were the results:
Wielding power increased testosterone in women compared with a control, regardless if it was performed in gender-stereotyped masculine or feminine ways
Stereotyped behavior but not performance balance testosterone
Therefore, these results support the theory that competition balances testosterone over masculinity.
It turns out that a lifetime of gender socialization could contribute to ‘sex differences’ in testosterone. (van Anders, et al. 2015)
Let’s take the testosterone release in competition one step further. All competitors release testosterone before a big game. Afterwards however, only the winners will get a testosterone boost while the losers’ testosterone falls. This is known as the loser effect. This makes the loser meek, timid and vulnerable over time resulting in a history of losing. Although testosterone is usually associated with aggression it also has the effect of social bonding between friends and loved ones. When teams compete against strangers, their testosterone levels increase. But if they individually compete with members of their own team all of their testosterone levels drop and the winner has the biggest drop. The brain registers this as backstabbing.
In a corporate context this very same thing can happen if you have colleagues compete against each other. The performance of the entire team lowers since the brain punishes competition with friends (loser effect). To create a winning culture, enhance the team by fostering cohesion and a collective winner effect – compete as a team against other teams of strangers.
It is important not to downplay the performance of top players to create an equal setting or fairness – because the team will fall into mediocrity. It is good to acknowledge everyone’s efforts but individuals contribute differently. Equal pay for unequal contributions and outcomes makes everyone unhappy.
Your brain is always assessing your strength and status within the social context. If you enter a situation where you have low status within a group – your IQ will actually lower. When you win, your brain is saying “I’m powerful enough to be the boss now” and begins to change itself biologically to become smarter and more assertive in order to maintain the top spot. Winning as a group has the subconscious mind say “We are in charge now” and begins to change accordingly. The winner effect can go to one’s head. High testosterone and dopamine levels can be a predictor of success but if the winner effect in your brain is too strong, you start making stupid decisions.
Winning cultures, winning teams can drive massive success. But the winner effect in power-balanced individuals or teams will have the most positive effects. This will encourage people to make positive changes in their lives and the lives of those they love.
References:
Aalto University. (September 18, 2014). Men enjoy competition, but so do women, researchers find. Retrieved July 3, 2017 from Science Daily.
Doraiswamy, M. & Swart, T. (October 3, 2016). 3 sexist myths about the brain, debunked. Retrieved July 4, 2017 from https://www.Weforum.org/agenda/2016/10/3-sexist-myths-about-men-s-and-women-s-brains-debunked/
Sheely, E. (February 21, 2014). The winner effect: how success affects brain chemistry. Retrieved March 22, 2017 from http://www.gamification.co/2014/02/21/the-winner-effect/
Van Anders, SM., Steiger, J., Goldey, KL. (November 10, 2015). Effects of gendered behavior on testosterone in women and men. Retrieved June 21, 2017 from https://www.ncbi.nim.nih.gov/pubmed/26504229