Focus: Behavioral Endocrinology and Cognitive Sex Differences
1. Development and characterization of a new visuospatial task that shows a large sex difference in humans.
2. Exploration of biological and social factors which influence human cognitive sex differences, particularly in spatial abilities.
3. Neural and behavioral development in human populations with atypical hormone exposure.
Research Interests
My research focuses on sex differences in cognitive abilities, particularly visuospatial skills, and tries to understand the origins of those differences. In particular, my lab is exploring performance on a relatively simple perceptual task that is known to rely on functioning of the parietal region of the brain and which shows a large sex difference in performance. In order to understand this skill, we are examining factors such as how individuals "pay attention" to their environment and the strategies they use for task completion. In addition, I am broadly interested in whether exposure to sex steroid hormones may influence, in concert with other forces, the development of cognitive abilities.
Publications
Lippa, R.A., Collaer, M.L., Peters, M. (in press, 2009). Sex differences in mental rotation and line angle judgments are positively associated with gender equality and economic development across 53 nations. Archives of Sexual Behavior.
Collaer, M. L., Brook, C.G.D., Conway, G. S., Hindmarsh, P.C. & Hines, M. (2009). Motor development in individuals with congenital adrenal hyperplasia: Strength, targeting, and fine motor skill. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 34, 249-258.
Collaer, M.L., Reimers, S., & Manning, J.T. (2007) Visuospatial performance on an internet line judgment task and potential hormonal markers: Sex, sexual orientation and 2D:4D. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 36, 177-192.
Maylor, E.A., Reimers, S., Choi, J., Collaer, M.L., Peters, M., & Silverman, I. (2007). Gender and sexual orientation differences in cognition across adulthood: Age is kinder to women than to men regardless of sexual orientation. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 36, 235-249.
Collaer, M. L. & Hill, E. M. (2006). Large Sex Difference in Adolescents on a Timed Line Judgment Task: Attentional contributors and task relationship to mathematics. Perception, 35, 561-572.
Cherney, I.D., & Collaer, M.L. (2005). Sex differences in line judgment: Relationship to mental rotation, academic preparation and strategy use. Perceptual & Motor Skills, 100, 615-627.
Halpern, D. F., & Collaer, M. L. (2005). Sex differences in visuospatial abilities: More than meets the eye. In P. Shah & A. Miyake (Eds.) The Cambridge Handbook of visuospatial Thinking. Cambridge University Press, pp. 170 - 212.
Collaer, M.L., Tory, H.O. & Valkenburgh, M.C. (2004). Do sex steroid hormones contribute to sexual differentiation of the human brain? In M.J. Legato (Ed.) Principles of Gender Specific Medicine (pp. 71-83). Amsterdam: Elsevier Science.
Collaer, M. L., & Nelson, J. D. (2002). Large visuospatial sex difference in line judgment: Possible role of attentional factors. Brain and Cognition, 49, 1-12.
Collaer, M.L., Geffner, M.E., Kaufman, F.R., Buckingham, B., & Hines, M. (2002). Cognitive and behavioral characteristics of Turner syndrome: Do they support a role for ovarian hormones in female sexual differentiation? Hormones and Behavior, 41, 139-155.
Collaer, M.L. (1998). Early organizational influences and social factors: Need for further evaluation. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 21, 368-369.
Collaer, M.L., & Hines, M. (1995). Human behavioral sex differences: A role for gonadal hormones during development? Psychological Bulletin, 118, 55-107.
Hines, M., & Collaer, M.L. (1993). Gonadal hormones and sexual differentiation of human behavior: Developments from research on endocrine syndromes and studies of brain structure. Annual Review of Sex Research, 4, 1-48.
Martin, N.A., Beatty, J., Johnson, R.A., Collaer, M.L., Vinuela, F., Becker, D.P., & Nuwer, M.R. (1993). Magnetoencephalographic localization of a language processing cortical area adjacent to a cerebral arteriovenous malformation. Case report. Journal of Neurosurgery, 79, 584-588.
Collaer, M.L., & Evans, J.R. (l982). A measure of short-term visual memory based on the WISC-R coding subtest. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 38, 641-644.
Evans, J.R., Blatchley, B., Speck, D., & Collaer, M.L. (1982). Clinical neurophysiology in the schools. School Psychology International, 3, 35-42.
Collaer, M.L., Magnuson, D.J., & Reid, L.D. (l977). Addictive agents and intracranial stimulation (ICS): Pressing for ICS before and after self-administration of sweetened morphine solutions. Physiological Psychology, 5, 425-428.
Conference Presentations
Garcia-Putnam, R. & Collaer, M. L. (April 30, 2008). Sex differences in a spatial virtual navigation task. Presentation at the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) Undergraduate Research Posters on the Hill Conference, Washington, DC
Collaer, M. L., Brook, C., Conway, G. S., Hindmarsh, P. C., & Hines, M. (April 11, 2008). Motor and physical development following prenatal androgen abnormality: Strength, fine motor skill, weight and stature in individuals with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Presentation at the Gender Development Research Conference, San Francisco, CA.
Richardson, A., Garcia-Putnam, R., Hauschka, S., Collaer, M. L. (June 23, 2007) Virtual navigation sex differences in a spatial updating task. Presentation at the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology meeting, Pacific Grove, CA.
Collaer, M.L., Reimers, S., & Manning, J.T. (October 2006). Human visuospatial ability and the neurohormonal hypothesis: line judgment performance in relation to sex, sexual orientation, and digit ratios. Presentation at the Society for Neuroscience meeting, Atlanta, GA.
Collaer, M.L., Reimers, S., & Manning, J.T. (June 2006). Does human visuospatial performance relate to early hormone exposure -- Line judgment performance in relation to sex, sexual orientation and digit ratios. Presentation at the annual meeting of the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, Pittsburgh, PA.
Maylor, E.A., Reimers, S. Choi, J., Collaer, M.L., Peters, M. & Silverman, I. (March 22, 2006). Gender Differences in Cognition Across Adulthood: Age is Kinder to Females Than to Males Regardless of Sexual Orientation. Presentation at the British Neuropsychological Society, Cambridge, UK.
Collaer, M.L. & Goralnick, J.J. (May, 2004). Does hemispheric specialization explain sex differences in visuospatial line judgment? Presentation at American Psychological Society, Chicago, IL.
Cherney, I.D. & Collaer, M.L. (November, 2002). Sex differences in line judgment: relationship to mental rotation, academic preparation and strategy use. Presentation at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Orlando, FL.
Collaer, M.L., Lane, C., & Maxwell, M. (June, 2002) Human males, but not females, are sensitive to visuospatial task geometry. Presentation at the annual meeting of the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, Amherst, MA.
Goralnick, J.J. & Collaer, M.L. (April, 2002). Does hemispheric lateralization explain the sex difference in line judgment? Presentation at North East Under/graduate Research Organization for Neuroscience (NEURON), Wellesley, MA
Collaer, M.L., Geffner, M.E., Kaufman, F.R., Buckingham, B. and Hines, M. (June 2001). Invited Address at Presidential Symposium: Exploring a Role for Ovarian Hormones in Cognitive Development: Evidence from Turner Syndrome. Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, Scottsdale, AZ.
Collaer, M.L. (May, 2001). Reading between the lines: Large sex difference on visuospatial test of line judgment. Presentation at symposium: Sex Differences in Cognition: Neuropsychological Perspectives. Western Psychological Association, Maui, HI.
Collaer, M. L., & Hill, E. (June, 2000). Large sex difference on new visuospatial task: Replication and relationship to mathematics. Poster presentation at the Annual Conference of the American Psychological Society, Miami, FL.
Collaer, M.L., Nelson, J.D., Moore, K., Walton, J. & Bain, J. (June 23-27, 1999). Sex differences in visuospatial ability: Do males and females attend to space differently? Presentation at the 25th Annual Meeting of the International Academy of Sex Research, Stony Brook, NY.
McDermott, L., Collaer, M.L. & Osborne, B. (June, 1999). Peripubertal ethanol, age, and sex interact to influence Morris water maze performance. Presentation at the 11th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Society, Denver, CO.
Collaer, M.L. & Nelson, J.D. (April, 1999). Visuospatial sex difference in line judgment: Do males and females use geometrical cues differently? Presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association, Providence, RI.
Collaer, M.L. (November, 1998). Large visuospatial sex difference in humans on a group version of a line judgment task. Presentation at the 27th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Los Angeles, CA.
Reis, A., Collaer, M. L., & Osborne, B. (February, 1998). Effects of sex and alcohol on spatial ability in rats. Presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association, Boston, MA.
Collaer, M.L., Geffner, M.E., Kaufman, F.R. & Hines, M. (July, 1997). Psychological demasculinization and defeminization in patients with Turner syndrome. Presentation at the 23rd Annual Meeting of the International Academy of Sex Research, Baton Rouge, LA.
Collaer, M.L., Geffner, M. E. & Hines, M. (November, 1996). Do ovarian hormones play a role in human cognitive development? Findings from patients with Turner syndrome. Presentation at the 26th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Washington DC.
Collaer, M.L. (1995). Cognitive issues in Turner syndrome. Presentation at symposium of the Turners Syndrome Society of Southern California, Orange, CA.
Collaer, M.L. (1995). Sex differences in spatial abilities -- from rodents to humans. Presentation to the Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA.
Collaer, M.L. (1995). Human behavioral sex differences: Are they influenced by gonadal hormones? Presentation to Neuropsychology Seminar Series, UCLA Medical School, Los Angeles, CA.
Collaer, M.L. (1992). The action potential theater -- electrophysiological performance art. Presentation at the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Anaheim, CA.
Collaer, M.L., Karatekin, C., & Beatty, J. (1990). Midsagittal and coronal features of the normal human brain: A quantitative MRI analysis. Presentation at the 20th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, St. Louis, MO.
Johnson, R.A., Beatty, J., Martin, N.A., Collaer, M.L., Jordan, S., Vinuela, F., Dion, J., & Becker, D. (1989). Magnetoencephalographic localization of language cortex adjacent to a cerebral arteriovenous malformation. Presentation at the 19th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Phoenix.
Collaer, M.L., Johnson, R.A., & Beatty, J. (1988). Frequency dependency of middle latency auditory responses of humans. Presentation at the 18th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Toronto, Ontario.