Theory of mind in users of anabolic androgenic steroids
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ORIGINAL INVESTIGATION
Theory of mind in users of anabolic androgenic steroids Anja Vaskinn 1,2
&
Lisa E. Hauger 3 & Astrid Bjørnebekk 3
Received: 3 April 2020 / Accepted: 26 June 2020 # The Author(s) 2020
Abstract Rationale Anabolic androgenic steroids are used to improve physical performance or increase lean muscle mass. About one-third of users develop a dependency syndrome, which is characterized by elevated rates of psychopathology, cognitive impairments, and aggressive and antisocial behaviors. The mechanisms behind these intra- and interpersonal problems are not known. Objective To examine theory of mind (ToM), i.e., the ability to infer the mental state of others, in users of anabolic androgenic steroids. Reduced ToM may be one factor underlying the interpersonal problems that have been reported with prolonged use of anabolic androgenic steroids. Methods The Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition (MASC) was used to assess ToM. Study participants were male/ female weightlifters who used anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS, n = 34/9), who were dependent on anabolic androgenic steroids (AASdep, n = 44/7), and a non-using weightlifting comparison group (WLC, n = 69/16). Results Analyses of variance showed that the AASdep group performed significantly worse than the WLC group, for all MASC measures (total ToM, cognitive ToM, affective ToM, overmentalizing/undermentalizing errors). Sex and sex x group interaction effects were non-significant. Conclusions Male and female weightlifters who were dependent on anabolic androgenic steroids had impaired ToM. Their reduced social cognition may be one contributing factor to the elevated rates of antisocial behavior reported in this population. Keywords Mentalizing . Mindreading . Testosterone . Dependence . Social cognition
Introduction Human social behavior is a result of numerous interacting factors. Among these are the “social” hormones oxytocin and testosterone. Whereas oxytocin, aka the “love” hormone in popularized jargon, is involved in affiliative behavior, bonding, and care (Macdonald and Macdonald 2010), testosterone has often been linked to aggression (Montoya et al. 2012). The complete picture, however, is * Anja Vaskinn [email protected] 1
Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, PO Box 4956, Nydalen, 0424 Oslo, Norway
2
Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, PO Box 1171, Blindern, 0318 Oslo, Norway
3
The Anabolic Androgenic Steroid Research Group, National Advisory Unit on Substance Use Disorder Treatment, Division Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, PO Box 4959, Nydalen, 0424 Oslo, Norway
less straightforward. Although both hormones influence human social behavior, the effect depends on the situation (van Honk et al. 2011a). Oxytocin can have antisocial effects, if antisociality provides benefits for offspring, ingroup members, or reproductive partners (Beery 2015). Testosterone has been proposed to drive motivation for seeking an
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