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The prevalence and ubiquity of violence in the modern media has spurred considerable interest, debate and public concern about its potential harm in forums ranging from scientific literature to Supreme Court and congressional hearings (Anderson and Bushman, 2001; Hall et al., 2011). Despite these concerns and mixed results from empirical research, it seems clear that there is a large range of individual differences in responses to observed violence, with the great majority of individuals not committing violent acts after observing violence. Given such individual variation, investigating individual differences in physiological responses to violent media may help characterize vulnerabilities that could manifest as antisocial behavior. Testosterone has been the focus of research because of its putative PD173074 supplier role in male aggression. However, the exact role testosterone plays in facilitating aggressive behavior has been widely debated (Eisenegger et al., 2011; Josephs et al., 2011; van Honk et al., 2011b). Prior work has linked Temsirolimus in vivo testosterone associated aggressive behaviors with functions that support reproductive/mating opportunities, such as gaining territory or improving social status. However, testosterone release is not without cost in the form of increased metabolic demands and immune system suppression (Boonekamp et al., 2008). The challenge hypothesis proposes that, because testosterone release can be so metabolically costly, an organism must balance the physiological and behavioral consequences of high testosterone levels to meet their environmental demands (Archer, 2006). As a result of this cost, when a direct, proxied, or symbolic opportunity to improve reproductive standing is not at stake, testosterone levels should not be responsive to a given situation. This hypothesis was originally used to describe the behavior of avian species, which exhibit slow seasonal changes in testosterone levels. Spikes in testosterone MRIP were detected when direct breeding opportunities or social instability occurred (Wingfield et al., 1990). The theory has since been tested in primates and used to predict behavior in humans (Archer, 2006), with research suggesting that aggression related to territoriality and dominance releases testosterone, while defensive aggression does not result in a similar release of testosterone. This led to the hypothesis that social elicitors of testosterone release in human males are either threats to social status (Josephs et al., 2011) or anticipation of reproductive opportunities (Wingfield et al., 1990). Behaviors that influence human social status or present a challenge to social status may take many direct and indirect forms. For example, a social interaction in which status is challenged may range from active participation in a physical sport, to competing for desirable jobs, to a game of chess (Mazur et al., 1992). The consequences of these challenges (i.e.