@article{ref1,
title="Cortisol boosts risky decision-making behavior in men but not in women",
journal="Psychoneuroendocrinology",
year="2017",
author="Kluen, Lisa Marieke and Agorastos, Agorastos and Wiedemann, Klaus and Schwabe, Lars",
volume="84",
number="",
pages="181-189",
abstract="Acute stress may escalate risky decision-making in men, while there is no such effect in women. Although first evidence links these gender-specific effects of stress to stress-induced changes in cortisol, whether elevated cortisol is indeed sufficient to boost risk-taking, whether a potential cortisol effect depends on simultaneous noradrenergic activation, and whether cortisol and noradrenergic activation exert distinct effects on risk-taking in men and women is unknown. In this experiment, we therefore set out to elucidate the impact of cortisol and noradrenergic stimulation on risky decision-making in men and women. In a fully-crossed, placebo-controlled, double-blind design, male and female participants received orally either a placebo, hydrocortisone, yohimbine, an alpha-2-adrenoceptor-antagonist leading to increased noradrenergic stimulation, or both drugs before completing the balloon analogue risk task, a validated measure of risk-taking. Overall, participants' choice was risk-sensitive as reflected in reduced responding in high- compared to moderate- and low-risk conditions. Cortisol, however, led to a striking increase in risk-taking in men, whereas it had no effect on risk-taking behavior in women. Yohimbine had no such effect and the gender-specific effect of cortisol was not modulated by yohimbine. Our data show that cortisol boosts risk-taking behavior in men but not in women. This differential effect of cortisol on risk-taking may drive gender differences in risky decision-making under stress.<br><br>Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0306-4530",
doi="10.1016/j.psyneuen.2017.07.240",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2017.07.240"
}