The Trouble with Testosterone

Overly macho guys are sometimes ridiculed as suffering from
"testosterone poisoning." Sure, it's only a joke, but the phrase may ring
all too true for some men who work at stressful jobs. Consider the nine
engineers who in 1995 began working for a southern firm that services oil
fields. Researchers at Georgia State University measured the new workers'
testosterone levels, then tracked the trajectory of their budding
careers. Only nine months later, four of the five men with the highest
levels of the hormone had quit or been fired. But the four recruits with
low levels were all still gainfully employed.

The reason? "High-testosterone men react negatively to frustration
and challenges," explains Georgia State University psychologist James
Dabbs, Ph.D. So the engineering job--which required tolling long, lonely
hours in isolated locales, not to mention being on call 24 hours a
day--was perhaps not the ideal career choice for a guy teeming with
testosterone, suggest Dabbs and Georgia State graduate student Colleen
Heusel.

Other studies have shown that actors and football players boast
higher testosterone levels than, for example, ministers. Does this mean
that help-wanted ads of the twenty-first century will read something
like: "Must have 3+ years experience, strong references, and serum
testosterone levels between 30 and 50mug/dl"? Dabbs doesn't believe
things will go that far. But given the cost of hiring and training
employees, he does suggest that companies might take extra precautions to
ensure that people with less-than-ideal hormonal profiles find
satisfaction at work.