Stature signals status: The association of stature, status and perceived dominance - a thought experiment.
Anthropol Anz
; 73(4): 265-274, 2016 Nov 01.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-27643683
ABSTRACT
SUMMARY:
Background:
There is a common perception that tall stature results in social dominance. Evidence in meerkats suggests that social dominance itself may be a strong stimulus for growth. Relative size serves as the signal for individuals to induce strategic growth adjustments.Aim:
We construct a thought experiment to explore the potential consequences of the question is stature a social signal also in humans? We hypothesize that (1) upward trends in height in the lower social strata are perceived as social challenges yielding similar though attenuated upward trends in the dominant strata, and that (2) democratization, but also periods of political turmoil that facilitate upward mobility of the lower strata, are accompanied by upward trends in height. Material andmethods:
We reanalyzed large sets of height data of European conscripts born between 1856-1860 and 1976-1980; and annual data of German military conscripts, born between 1965 and 1985, with information on height and school education.Results:
Taller stature is associated with higher socioeconomic status. Historic populations show larger height differences between social strata that tend to diminish in the more recent populations. German height data suggest that both democratization, and periods of political turmoil facilitating upward mobility of the lower social strata are accompanied by a general upward height spiral that captures the whole population.Discussion:
We consider stature as a signal. Nutrition, health, general living conditions and care giving are essential prerequisites for growth, yet not to maximize stature, but to allow for its function as a lifelong social signal. Considering stature as a social signal provides an elegant explanation of the rapid height adjustments observed in migrants, of the hitherto unexplained clustering of body height in modern and historic cohorts of military conscripts, and of the parallelism between changes in political conditions, and secular trends in adult human height since the 19th century.
Buscar no Google
Temas:
ECOS
/
Aspectos_gerais
Bases de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Classe Social
/
Estatura
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Incidence_studies
/
Observational_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Aspecto:
Determinantes_sociais_saude
Limite:
Adult
/
Humans
/
Male
País/Região como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Anthropol Anz
Ano de publicação:
2016
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Alemanha