Is there a relationship between the performance in a chronometric mental‐rotations test and salivary testosterone and estradiol levels in children aged 9–14 years?

Abstract

The consistent gender differences favoring males in some spatial abilities like mental rotation have raised the question of whether testosterone or other gonadal hormones contribute to these differences--especially because such gender differences seem to appear mainly from the age of puberty on. Studies generally suggest that spatial ability is facilitated by moderately high testosterone levels (i.e., levels that are relatively high for females and relatively low for males). However, the role of sex steroids for mental-rotation performance of (pre-) pubertal children has not been the focus of research, yet. In our study, the relationships between different aspects of mental-rotation performance (accuracy, reaction time, rotation speed) and salivary testosterone and estradiol levels were investigated. Subjects were 109 children (51 boys and 58 girls) aged between 9 and 14 years (M = 11.41, SD = 1.74). They performed a chronometric mental-rotations test, in which the stimuli consisted of three-dimensional drawings of Shepard and Metzler cube figures. In addition, saliva samples were gathered for the analysis of free testosterone and estradiol levels. Results showed a significant gender difference in reaction time and rotational speed in favor of boys, and a significant age, but no gender difference in testosterone and estradiol levels. We found no significant relationships between hormonal levels and any measure of mental-rotation performance.

Testosterone–cortisol dissociation in children exposed to prenatal maternal stress, and relationship with aggression: Project Ice Storm

“…We ran exploratory analyses using self-reported Tanner staging at 13½ years as our best estimate of pubertal maturation at 11½ (acknowledging the limitations of this approach given the vast individual variability in temporal progression through puberty, but assuming that pubertal status does not regress across time) and did not find any moderation by Tanner stage in either model (data not shown). The lack of sex differences in testosterone or cortisol levels, as observed in the current sample, is consistent with previous studies of children and adolescents in the earlier stages of puberty (August, Tkachuk, & Grumbach, 1969; Quaiser-Pohl, Jansen, Lehmann, & Kudielka, 2016; Tsai, Seiler, & Jacobson, 2013). However, it will be important for future studies to consider how testosterone–cortisol associations might interact with gold standard physician-reported Tanner staging.…”

“…In relation to this, the lack of sex differences in testosterone levels is not entirely surprising, given that individuals in our cohort were likely in various stages of pubertal development at the time of the hormonal sampling. Other studies also report a lack of sex differences in testosterone levels, and in some cases the median testosterone level is even higher in prepubertal girls than prepubertal boys (August et al, 1969;Quaiser-Pohl et al, 2016;Tsai et al, 2013).…”

The Relationships Among Testosterone, Cortisol, and Cognitive Control of Emotion as Underlying Mechanisms of Emotional Intelligence of 10- to 11-Year-Old Children

“…The lack of sex differences in testosterone levels, as reported in our results, is consistent with previous studies of children (Quaiser-Pohl et al, 2016;Nguyen et al, 2018). Distinguishing between the biologically active free fraction of gonadal hormone levels (as measured in saliva) and the amount of available hormone levels in total (as measured in blood) might be important (Quaiser-Pohl et al, 2016).…”

Ovarian hormones: a long overlooked but critical contributor to cognitive brain structures and function

“…Research on links between pubertal ovarian hormones and cognition is scant. Despite the evidence for cognitive improvements across adolescence, the limited available data provide little indication of an association between puberty in girls (status, timing, or estradiol levels) and traditional domains, such as memory, verbal fluency, and spatial skills . There is some theoretical and empirical evidence, however, for pubertal hormone contributions to the adolescent increase in risk‐related decision making .…”