Heroes, Rogues, And Lovers: Testosterone And Behavior (2001) - Plot & Excerpts
I first read this book years ago and loved it then. I recently re-read it, and my take on it has soured somewhat.The thesis of the book - that testosterone levels influence behavior on animals, including human animals of both sexes - is one for which I feel much sympathy. The book is very easy to read and is interesting, clear, and enthusiastically written.The central problem with the book stems from the poor (or poorly explained) research design of the studies that it invokes. Most of the conclusions of the book stem from observations in which there is no actual treatment. In other words: "Let's look at a bunch of people in different professions. Look! People in X profession have higher testosterone levels than those in Y profession!" Such observations cannot on their own support the author's overexpansive claims. What's more, even these types of observations are suspect. To take one example: the authors briefly - too briefly - note that cortisol is antagonistic to testosterone. In other words: when you're stressed out, you won't have high serum testosterone levels. Yet there seems to be no attempt to control for this in the book. So when they say that out of the groups studied, farmers have the lowest levels, it's tough to know what to make of it. Maybe they were tested when they were in the midst of a strenuous period of labor. Who knows. So not only are the cross-comparisons between groups scientifically suspect, but the measures of a given group are suspect as well. What's more, the sample sizes in many cases are far too small to generalize as the author does.To his detriment, the author, rather than acknowledge these flaws, tries to invoke "just-so" stories to explain his findings. Farmers have lower testosterone levels? Must be because they're so patient. Ministers also have high levels? Ditto. But actors have high levels, even though both they and ministers perform in front of a stage? Hmmm... well, acting is an unstable profession, so that must account for it! Etc.You get the idea. At certain points the author gets far too breathless and fails to take a skeptical look at his inferences. Yet this is still a fun book to read, and some of the evidence is indeed compelling. The causal mechanism is most plausible when the author describes the effects of administering testosterone or castration on animals. This book's logic is oftentimes dubious (even if it turns out that it hits on the correct conclusion), but the author does not make a fool of himself. It's just a shame that the rigor did not match the enthusiasm.
Read this book a few years back, after finding it cheap at a used book store, and it explained pretty much everything. If you're a student of human behavior (and who isn't?) you have to read this book. If you're a hard core determinist who believes that all human behavior is subject to prior causation then you have to read this book. If you find yourself incarcerated after an unfortunate encounter with law enforcement then you have to read this book, because, after all, those who can't "spit" a ten will probably swallow one instead and it's good to, you know, like, know yourself and stuff.
What do You think about Heroes, Rogues, And Lovers: Testosterone And Behavior (2001)?
