Aggression, physical activity levels and sex role identity in teenagers exposed in utero to MPA.

Sex-dimorphic traits and behavior were measured in a 17-year old prospective study of 74 teenager boys and 98 girls who had been exposed to medroxyprogesterone acetate in utero compared with 459 boys and 546 girls not exposed. Bem Sex Role Identity scores were identical in exposed and non-exposed teenagers of each sex. There were no significant differences between MPA-exposed and non-exposed males or females on the Buss-Durkee overall aggression scale and on its assaultiveness subscale. Mothers of exposed males more often reported that teachers had complained that their offspring were naughty in school. No such difference was reported for females, nor for other school behaviors of dominance/aggression, activity, shyness and quietness. Exposed and non-exposed children were similar in the number of accidents experienced in childhood, as reported by their mothers, and in participation in competitive sports. These findings fail to support hypotheses posed by earlier researchers that exposure in utero to medroxyprogesterone acetate might alter sex-dimorphic behavior or traits in later life.

Long-term effects of MPA on human progeny: intellectual development.

Tests of verbal and spatial ability were done on 450 boys and 537 girls in their late teens of whom 73 and 97, respectively, had been exposed in utero to MPA. Exposed boys achieved higher raw scores than controls on verbal and spatial tests but the differences were explained by their more favorable demographic and social characteristics. Exposed girls did not differ from controls. Although, mothers of exposed boys reported that their offspring talked and walked later than controls, our results support the hypothesis that intrauterine exposure to MPA at contraceptive doses has no long-term effect on intellectual development.

PIP: Tests of verbal and spatial ability in a sample of teenagers who were exposed in utero to medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) suggest that fetal exposure to this drug at contraceptive dosages has no longterm effect on intellectual development. This double-blind study included 450 males and 537 females in late adolescence (average age of 18.6 years at time of testing), out of which 73 males and 97 females had been exposed to MPA in utero. All participants were administered a word incongruity test, word completion test, block rotation test, and Raven matrices test. Teenagers exposed to MPA scored higher than controls on both tests of verbal ability. On the word incongruity test, exposed boys scored an average of 0.8 points higher than controls while exposed girls scored 0.2 points higher than their nonexposed counterparts. On the word completion test, exposed boys scored 1.5 points higher than nonexposed controls while exposed girls' scores were 0.7 points higher. In the tests of spatial ability, MPA-exposed boys scored higher than male controls, but this difference was largely a result of education and ethnic group. There was no difference in spatial ability between exposed and nonexposed girls. Mothers of males exposed in utero to MPA reported that their sons talked and walked later than the norm; however, the validity of this observation could not be assessed. Previous studies that have examined the association between fetal exposure to contraceptive steroids and intellectual development have had inconsistent findings. The present study has the advantage of large numbers and the ability to control for demographic and social characteristics. Its finding that fetal exposure to MPA has no longterm effects on intellectual development should be reassuring to family planning programs that want to offer MPA as a contraceptive alternative.

Successful career women at midlife: crises and transitions.

Recent theories and studies have gradually clarified some of the psychological processes of middle age. Most interesting are the contributions that maintain different developmental processes for women and men. Three of the major theories in the area seem to converge in proposing a process of gradual cross-sex transition in adulthood, the result of which may be a more integrated or androgynous personality structure in the second half of life. A different model of adult development, centered on midlife crisis, was proposed by Levinson et al. as a universal stage in men's life cycle. Similar theory and research about women are not as conclusive. The present study investigated in depth the life history of twenty-five American career women at midlife. Such women sociologically combine feminine and masculine roles and may be considered as a test case for the theories. The transitions experienced by these women during their lifetimes were categorized into "masculine" or "feminine" types. It was found that they were distributed about equally between the two types of transitions, thus excluding a simple biological approach. Acute midlife crisis was reported by only about a third of the sample. It is proposed that the double role protects these women from acute crisis.

PERSONAL STYLES OF REACTION TO THE FRUSTRATION OF OTHERS AS PORTRAYED BY MULTIDIMENSIONAL SCALOGRAM ANALYSIS.

A questionnaire for the assessment of reactions to the frustration of others was constructed and administered to 56 Ss. This questionnaire concentrated on the reported intensity of eight reactions, namely: Pity, Attempt to Help, Reproach, Withdrawal, Disgust, Mockery, Anger, and Malicious Joy. Each one of the 56 Ss had a total profile of the eight reactions, and these profiles were analyzed by Multidimensional Scalogram Analysis (MSA). MSA led to the conclusion that the personal styles of reaction could be characterized as a Cartesian product of two facets: a ) Activity-Passivity of the reaction, b) High vs. Low Intensity of the reaction. A third facet was hinted, which relates to the time-sequence of the reactions.