Effects of repeated exposure to electric footshock on subsequent agonistic behaviour and adrenocortical secretion in male mice of different androgen status

Two experiments were conducted to examine effects of repeated exposure to electric footshock on subsequent agonistic behaviour and adrenocortical secretion in male mice of different androgen status. Aggressive and submissive behavioural components were independently studied in the two experiments. It was found that repetition reduced aggressive, and stimulated submissive and adrenocortical responses to shock, particularly in castrates. The direction of the shock effects on aggressive behaviour was reversed by repetition in castrates, whereas only the magnitude of the behavioural responses was changed at normal androgen levels. It is suggested that the changes in agonistic responses to shock induced by repetition are mediated by changes in pituitary-adrenocortical secretion, and that androgen inhibits the shock effects on agonistic behaviour through inhibition of the pituitary-adrenocortical responses to shock.