According to one study handling a gun raises testosterone levels leading to increased aggressiveness. Perhaps Floyd Landis needs to use the gun defense. (Roxran if I ever have lunch with you just remember I like hot sauce. ) http://www.webmd.com/content/article/125/116082.htm Guns Up Testosterone, Male Aggression Testosterone Spikes After Handling a Gun, Making Men More Aggressive By Daniel DeNoon WebMD Medical News Reviewed By Louise Chang, MD on Friday, July 28, 2006 July 28, 2006 -- Handling a gun makes men's testosterone levels rise -- and makes them more aggressive. The finding comes from a study by psychology student Jennifer Klinesmith and her professors at Knox College, Galesburg, Ill. Klinesmith designed the study, in which 18- to 22-year-old college men participated. Klinesmith told the men they'd be taking part in a study of the effect of attention to detail on taste sensitivity. She collected a saliva sample for testosterone testing. Then she led each man into a room where he sat at a table with an object on it. The man had to take apart the object and put it back together according to instructions. For half the men, the object was a pellet gun that mimicked a Desert Eagle automatic handgun. The other half of the men worked with a child's game called Mouse Trap. Fifteen minutes later, the men gave another saliva sample. Then they were asked to taste a lidded 3-ounce cup of water with a drop of Frank's Red Hot Sauce in it. Hot-Sauce Trick Finally, the men were given a 3-ounce cup of water and a bottle of the hot sauce. They were told the water would be given to the next man in the study, and that they could -- anonymously -- put as much hot sauce in the water as they liked. This hot-sauce trick has been used before. The more aggressive a man is feeling, the more hot sauce he tends to put in the next guy's drink. Sure enough, testosterone went up about 100 times more in the men who handled the gun than in the men who handled the children's toy. And the gun handlers put three times more hot sauce in the water -- on average, about a half ounce -- than the toy handlers. The more a man's testosterone went up after gun handling, the more hot sauce he put in the water. "Such findings raise many of the usual questions about whether the presence of guns in modern society contributes to violent behavior," Klinesmith and colleagues conclude. "Although our study is clearly far from definitive, its results suggest that guns may indeed increase aggressiveness partially via changes in the hormone testosterone." Indeed, after debriefing, many of the men said they were disappointed that the water they'd spiked with hot sauce wasn't really going to be given to another unsuspecting man. The study appears in the July issue of Psychological Science.
couldn't the use of any type of weapon (like a knife) also raise the testosterone of a man? the handling of an object that gives the user some sort of dangerous power could make the man more aggressive and trigger the brain.
[rquoter] Finally, the men were given a 3-ounce cup of water and a bottle of the hot sauce. They were told the water would be given to the next man in the study, and that they could -- anonymously -- put as much hot sauce in the water as they liked. This hot-sauce trick has been used before. The more aggressive a man is feeling, the more hot sauce he tends to put in the next guy's drink. [/rquoter] The fact that anybody would enjoy putting hot sauce in someone's drink is the most disturbing part of this article to me. As far as I'm concerned anybody who would enjoy this should be automatically disqualified from a study on normal human reactions as a sociopath.
This story is as BS as violent movies, music, and video games making children do violent things. The hot sauce trick is just that. It doesn't indicate how trigger happy a person is. Working out and playing sports also increases testosterone. The study's parameters are so narrow that it can't be taken seriously.
^ I tend to agree that the study isn't that thorough but think its interesting and would explain a lot regarding attitudes and behaviors. It would be interesting to see some more thorough followups.
WOW such a blatant disregard of a study when it seems to show that the handling of guns raises testosterone levels. Do you not believe it because you have some experience with these types of experiments and you believe this one was handled poorly?, or is it that this experiment tastes of some greater political message that could lead to gun control issues that you strongly oppose. So much so that even if the evidence is true you will fight it for political purposes. Or is there some other reason disregard this study?
Believe it or not, I support gun control. Bad experimental design has led to a bad conclusion. I feel that psych studies like these hold too much clout over media coverage and legislation. There's a question of causation or correlation that the experiment doesn't address. The guns did raise testosterone levels. What if a baseball bat was given to other subjects? A knife? Is it the weapons causing the increase, the brief sense of danger, or is it an exclusive reaction to guns? Are experienced gun handlers less prone to the spike? Men that have sex regularly also have increased testosterone. What if it was a porno tape cover you had to hold? Women's underwear? Does that mean p*rn causes aggressiveness? What if the study was looking for correlations to rape? Do you remember the Superbowl myth? Then there's the "aggression test" followed with some anecdotal evidence. The reader automatically assumes that guns and aggression are a deadly mix, but the aggression indicator used isn't a credible substitute for physical violence. It's a blind and anonymous trick that has been previously established for circumstancial aggression. I also don't like the anecdotal evidence the article puts in the end. If there was a politcal stance that needed boosting, then that would end all doubt. So I'm not a NRA member. I just don't like bad science being boosted as credible evidence. The researchers even admitted that it needs work and their statistical jargon doesn't make it seem like the tolerance is high.
Interesting, I think you make some good points. I hear what you are saying about unspoken conclusions in a study like this. But I don't think it should summarilly be cast off because of it, but it's short comings should be pointed out.
A lot of fun things are phallic in nature... guns, chainsaws, baseball bats, pickaxes, sledgehammers, speedboats, Harleys... and they're probably fun because they raise the testosterone levels.
Then again anything fun for most guys heighten the testosterone levels... Why have .223 ammo gone up so much everywhere? ...Makes me want to switch to .308 now...
I should think that is obvious. The 'biggest customer' has a whole lot of demand these days. Alot of the people that used to do consumer work with a little bit of government work have had to switch over to full time government work.
I know, and I thought this was the case...But .45 acp, .40, 9mm, .308 and other common calibers that are also used by the military in some cases haven't gone up...Walmart is doubling the price on .223, and internet orders state they are running low on quantities...As someone who enjoys target shooting, to me the cost of factory ammo is as important as the cost of the carbines/rifles/pistols...I know I could reload, but that is something my wife is dead set against (no negotiation), she thinks I will blow up the house or something...
