Hormones

what are hormones

chemicals that are released from glands in the body into the blood stream, impacting other cells/tissues/glands

What Berthold find

male chickens show particular male behaviours

after castration these behaviours ceased

what is the pituitary gland

The master gland of the body

It produces many hormones that travel throughout the body, directing processes or stimulating other glands to produce other hormones

what is cortisol

released from the adrenal gland in response to perceived threat or stress

cortisol receptors are abundant in the hippocampus, amygdala and prefrontal cortex

stress and heirarchy

1. rank-related stress

2. impact of stability

3. personality and social strategy

4. feedback resistance

what effect does cortisol have on memory

increased memory coding

impaired memory retrieval

cortisol and decision making

shifts behaviour from goal-directed to habitual control

what is oxytocin

love hormone - important for bonding

increases trust

what is oestrogen

very different levels between males and females

females 30-400 pg/ml fluctuating

males 10-40 pg/ml stable

how does oestrogen impact the brain

impacts plasticity and function of hippocampus and amygdala

oestrogen and stress

oestrogen levels impact HPA activation - less stress response when oestrogen is high

testosterone and social behaviour

small correlation between testosterone and aggression

testosterone and dominance motivation are linked

increased aggression only following threat

does not cause aggression, changes how strongly people respond to social challenges

testosterone and competition

rises after victory

losers show decrease