The relationship between sex-typical body shape and quality indicators.

Sim, Kyungok

doi:10.1037/h0099207

Cited by 12 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 117 publications

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“…Thus, SHR represents an informative anthropomorphic measurement of male upper-body configuration. As predicted, HGS has been shown to be positively correlated with SHR in all samples, including one with female participants ( Gallup et al, 2007 , 2010 ; Sim, 2013 ).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 76%

“…Studies examining the connection between HGS and fluctuating asymmetry (FA) – a measure of developmental stability and health – provide much more inconsistent results. The first study to investigate this relationship measured six bilateral traits, and found that HGS was negatively correlated with FA in women but not men ( Sim, 2013 ). Combining measurements across 12 paired traits, HGS was found to be negatively correlated with FA within a subsequent sample of men ( Fink et al, 2014 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Handgrip Strength as a Darwinian Fitness Indicator in Men

Gallup

Fink

2018

Front. Psychol.

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Handgrip strength (HGS) is a robust measure of overall muscular strength and function, and has long been predictive of a multitude of health factors and physical outcomes for both men and women. The fact that HGS represents such a ubiquitous measure of health and vitality may reflect the significance of this trait during human evolution. This trait is also highly sexually dimorphic due to influences of androgenic hormones and fat-free body mass, suggesting that it has been further elaborated through sexual selection. Consistent with this view, research within evolutionary psychology and related fields has documented distinct relationships between HGS and measures of social and sexual behavior, especially in men. Here, we review studies across different societies and cultural contexts showing that male HGS predicts measures of aggression and social dominance, perceived formidability, male-typical body morphology and movement, courtship display, physical attractiveness, and sexual behavior and reproductive fitness. These findings underscore the value of including HGS as an independent measure within studies examining human sexual selection, and corroborate existing research suggesting that specific features of physical strength have and continue to be under positive directional selection in men.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 76%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Handgrip Strength as a Darwinian Fitness Indicator in Men

Gallup

Fink

2018

Front. Psychol.

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“…Van Dongen and Gangestad [257] and Van Dongen [256] conducted meta-analyses of published papers and concluded that the literature did not support an association between facial symmetry and attractiveness. Moreover, a second meta-analysis by Van Dongen [258] failed to find an association between developmental instability, as measured by fluctuating asymmetry, and perceived masculinity or femininity (but see [259]). Finally, an additional study by Van Dongen [260] also failed to find an association between attractiveness and facial symmetry.…”

Section: Evolutionary Biologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Fluctuating Asymmetry of Human Populations: A Review

Graham

Özener

2016

Symmetry

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Fluctuating asymmetry, the random deviation from perfect symmetry, is a widely used population-level index of developmental instability, developmental noise, and robustness. It reflects a population's state of adaptation and genomic coadaptation. Here, we review the literature on fluctuating asymmetry of human populations. The most widely used bilateral traits include skeletal, dental, and facial dimensions; dermatoglyphic patterns and ridge counts; and facial shape. Each trait has its advantages and disadvantages, but results are most robust when multiple traits are combined into a composite index of fluctuating asymmetry (CFA). Both environmental (diet, climate, toxins) and genetic (aneuploidy, heterozygosity, inbreeding) stressors have been linked to population-level variation in fluctuating asymmetry. In general, these stressors increase average fluctuating asymmetry. Nevertheless, there have been many conflicting results, in part because (1) fluctuating asymmetry is a weak signal in a sea of noise; and (2) studies of human fluctuating asymmetry have not always followed best practices. The most serious concerns are insensitive asymmetry indices (correlation coefficient and coefficient of indetermination), inappropriate size scaling, unrecognized mixture distributions, inappropriate corrections for directional asymmetry, failure to use composite indices, and inattention to measurement error. Consequently, it is often difficult (or impossible) to compare results across traits, and across studies.

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“…It has been shown that in males SHR is correlated with such masculine traits as hand-grip strength [ 40 ] and sexual behaviour (e.g. age at first sexual intercourse or number of sex partners [ 41 , 42 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Masculinity and immune system efficacy in men

2020

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Masculinity-related morphological traits are supposed to be honest indicators of a man's biological quality. While some studies showed that sexually dimorphic traits are related to various aspects of biological condition such as general health, immunity or fertility, still little is known about the relationship between masculine traits and the effectiveness of innate and adaptive immunity in humans. The aim of this study was to see if masculine traits, which are dependent on androgen levels in foetal and pubertal stages of development, are related to the immune quality in healthy men. The immune quality was evaluated for 91 healthy men aged 19–36 years. Immunity measurements included innate and adaptive parameters. General health status, age, testosterone level, BMI, physical activity, and smoking were controlled. The shoulder-to-hip ratio (SHR), 2D:4D digit ratio and hand-grip strength (HGS) were used as markers of masculinization. The regressions showed that when controlling for confounds, masculinity-related traits were in general not related to innate and adaptive immunity. Only a weak association was observed for right 2D:4D ratio and T-lymphocyte counts (but it becomes non-significant after adjustment for multiple comparisons). Our results do not support the premise that masculinity is a cue for immunological quality in men. However, the positive association between right 2D:4D and T lymphocytes might suggest that further studies are needed to verify if androgen stimulation in prenatal development might be related to immunity in adulthood.

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The relationship between sex-typical body shape and quality indicators.

Cited by 12 publications

References 117 publications

Handgrip Strength as a Darwinian Fitness Indicator in Men

Handgrip Strength as a Darwinian Fitness Indicator in Men

Fluctuating Asymmetry of Human Populations: A Review

Masculinity and immune system efficacy in men

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