Performance ranking is common across a range of professional and recreational domains. Even when it has no economic consequences but does order people in terms of their social standing, anticipating such performance ranking may affect how people feel and perform. We examined this possibility by asking human subjects to execute a simple cognitive task while anticipating their performance being ranked by an outside evaluator. We measured baseline and postperformance levels of testosterone and cortisol. We find that (1) anticipating performance ranking reduces testosterone and increases cortisol, (2) both these hormonal responses benefit cognitive performance, which explains why (3) anticipation of being ranked by a peer increases cognitive performance.
AkinolaM.MendesW. B. (2012). Stress-induced cortisol facilitates threat-related decision making among police officers. Behavioral Neuroscience, 126(1), 167-174. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026657
2.
AndersonS.ErtacS.GneezyU.ListJ. A.MaximianoS. (2013). Gender, competitiveness, and socialization at a young age: Evidence from a matrilineal and a patriarchal society. Review of Economic Statistics, 95(4), 1438-1443. https://doi.org/10.1162/REST_a_00312
3.
ApicellaC. L.DreberA.MollerstromJ. (2014). Salivary testosterone change following monetary wins and losses predicts future financial risk-taking. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 39, 58-64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.09.025
4.
BateupH. S.BoothA.ShirtcliffE. A.GrangerD. A. (2002). Testosterone, cortisol, and women’s competition. Evolution and Human Behavior, 23(3), 181-192. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1090-5138(01)00100-3
5.
BoschJ. A.VeermanE. C. I.de GeusE. J.ProctorG. B. (2011). α-Amylase as a reliable and convenient measure of sympathetic activity: Don’t start salivating just yet!Psychoneuroendocrinology, 36(4), 449-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2010.12.019
6.
BrandtsJ.GërxhaniK.SchramA. (2020). Are there gender differences in status ranking aversion?Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 84, 101485. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2019.101485
7.
BuckertM.SchwierenC.KudielkaB.FiebachC. (2015). How stressful are economic competitions in the lab?Journal of Economic Psychology, 62, 231-245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2017.07.004
ChenC.WilliamsonM. G.ZhouF. H. (2012). Reward system design and group creativity: An experimental investigation. Accounting Review, 87(6), 1885-191. https://doi.org/10.2308/accr-50232
CoatesJ. M.GurnellM.RustichiniA. (2009). Second-to-fourth digit ratio predicts success among high-frequency financial traders. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U S A, 106(2), 623-628. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0810907106
12.
CookeA.KavussanuM.McIntyreD.RingC. (2014). Effects of competition on endurance performance and the underlying psychological and physiological mechanisms. Biological Psychology, 86(3), 370-378. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2011.01.009
13.
CuevaC.RobertsR.SpencerT.RaniN.TempestM.ToblerP. N.HerbertJ.RustichiniA. (2015). Cortisol and testosterone increase financial risk taking and may destabilize markets. Science Reports, 5, 11206. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep11206
14.
De DreuC. K. W.NijstadB. A. (2008). Conflict and creativity: Threat-rigidity or motivated focus?Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95(3), 648-661. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.95.3.648
15.
DickersonS. S.KemenyM. E. (2004). Acute stressors and cortisol responses: A theoretical integration and synthesis of laboratory research. Psychological Bulletin, 130(3), 355-391. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.130.3.355
16.
EiseneggerC.NaefM.SnozziR.HeinrichsM.FehrE. (2010). Prejudice and truth about the effect of testosterone on human bargaining behaviour. Nature, 463, 356-359. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08711
17.
FaulF.ErdfelderE.LangA.-G.BuchnerA. (2007). G*Power 3: A flexible statistical power analysis program for the social, behavioral, and biomedical sciences. Behavior Research Methods, 39, 175-191. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03193146
GoldfarbE. V.FroboeseM. I.CoolsR.PhelpsE. (2016). Stress and cognitive flexibility: Cortisol increases are associated with enhanced updating but impaired switching. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 29(1), 14-24. https://doi.org/10.1162/jocn_a_01029
21.
GouchieC.KimuraD. (1991). The relationship between testosterone levels and cognitive-ability patterns. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 16(4), 323-334. https://doi.org/10.1016/0306-4530(91)90018-O
22.
GrangerD. A.ShirtcliffE. A.BoothA.KivlighanK. TSchwartzE. B. (2004). The “trouble” with salivary testosterone. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 29(10), 1229-1240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2004.02.005
23.
HarrisonL. K.DenningS.EastonH. L.HallJ. C.BurnsV. E.RingC.CarrollD. (2001). The effects of competition and competitiveness on cardiovascular activity. Psychophysiology, 38(4), 601-606. https://doi.org/10.1111/1469-8986.3840601
24.
HeffetzO.FrankR. (2008). Preferences for status: Evidence and economic implications. In BenhabibJ.JacksonM.BisinA. (Eds.), Handbook of social economics (Vol. 1A, pp. 69-91). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-53187-2.00003-6
25.
HuaJ. T.HildrethK. L.PelakV. C. (2016). Effects of testosterone therapy on cognitive functioning in aging: A systematic review. Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology, 29(3), 122-138. https://doi.org/10.1097/WNN.0000000000000104
26.
JostJ. T.BanajiM. R.NosekB. A. (2004). A decade of system justification theory: Accumulated evidence of conscious and unconscious bolstering of the status quo. Political Psychology, 25(6), 881-919. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9221.2004.00402.x
27.
KelseyR. M.BlascovichJ.LeittenC. L.SchneiderT. R.TomakaJ.WiensS. (2000). Cardiovascular reactivity and adaptation to recurrent psychological stress: The moderating effects of evaluative observation. Psychophysiology, 37(6), 748-756. https://doi.org/10.1111/1469-8986.3760748
28.
KoedelC.TyhurstE. (2012). Math skills and labor-market outcomes: Evidence from a resume-based field experiment. Economics of Education Review, 31(1), 131-140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econedurev.2011.09.006
MehtaP. H.JosephsR. A. (2006). Testosterone change after losing predicts the decision to compete again. Hormones and Behavior, 50(5), 684-692. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2006.07.001
31.
MoirR. (1998). A Monte Carlo analysis of the Fisher randomization technique: Reviving randomization for experimental economists. Experimental Economics, 1(June), 87-100. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009961917752
SchmaderT.JohnsM.ForbesC. (2008). An integrated process model of stereotype threat effects on performance. Psychological Review, 115(2), 336-356. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.115.2.336
39.
SchramA. J. H. C.BrandtsJ.GërxhaniK. (2019). Social-status ranking: A hidden channel to gender inequality under competition. Experimental Economics, 22(2), 396-418. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10683-018-9563-6
40.
SchwabeL.JoelsM.RoozendaalB.WolfO. T.OitzlM. S. (2012). Stress effects of memory: An update and integration. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 36(7), 1740-1749. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2011.07.002
StantonS. J.LieningS. H.SchultheissO. C. (2011). Testosterone is positively associated with risk taking in the Iowa Gambling Task. Hormones and Behavior, 59(2), 252-256. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.12.003
43.
StawB. M.SandelandsL. E.DuttonJ. E. (1981). Threat-rigidity effects in organizational behavior: A multi-level analysis. Administrative Science Quarterly, 26(2), 501-524. https://doi.org/10.2307/2392337
44.
TaylorS. E.LobelM. (1989). Social-comparison activity under threat: Downward evaluation and upward contacts. Psychological Review, 96(4), 569-575. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.96.4.569
45.
ThilersP. P.MacDonaldS. W. S.HerlitzA. (2006). The association between endogenous free testosterone and cognitive performance: A population-based study in 35-90 year old men and women. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 31(5), 565-576. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2005.12.005
TwengeJ. M.GentileB.DeWallC. N.MaD.LacefieldK.SchurtzD. R. (2010). Birth cohort increases in psychopathology among young Americans, 1938-2007: A cross-temporal meta-analysis of the MMPI. Clinical Psychology Review, 30(2), 145-154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2009.10.005
48.
WeberM.SchramA. J. H. C. (2016). The non-equivalence of labour market taxes: A real-effort experiment. Economic Journal, 127(604), 2187-2215. https://doi.org/10.1111/ecoj.12365
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
