Derya Atamtürk

Age‐Related Factors in the Relationship Between Foot Measurements and Living Stature and Body Weight

Abstract:  The measurements of feet and footprints are especially important in forensic identification, as they have been used to predict the body height and weight of victims or suspects. It can be observed that the subjects of forensic‐oriented studies are generally young adults. That is to say, researchers rarely take into consideration the body’s proportional changes with age. Hence, the aim of this study is to generate equations which take age and sex into consideration, when stature and body weight are estimated from foot and footprints dimensions. With this aim in mind, we measured the stature, body weight, foot length and breadth, heel breadth, footprint length and breadth, and footprint heel breadth of 516 volunteers (253 males and 263 females) aged between 17.6 and 82.9 years using standard measurement techniques. The sample population was divided randomly into two groups. Group 1, the study group, consisted of 80% of the sample (n = 406); the remaining 20% were assigned to the cross‐validation group or Group 2 (n = 110). In the first stage of the study, we produced equations for estimating stature and weight using a stepwise regression technique. Then, their reliability was tested on Group 2 members. Statistical analyses showed that the ratios of foot dimensions to stature and body weight change considerably with age and sex. Consequently, the regression equations which include these variables yielded more reliable results. Our results indicated that age and sex should be taken into consideration when predicting human body height and weight for forensic purposes.

Self-reported aggressiveness is not related to developmental instability

In recent years, several researchers have focused on the relationship between fluctuating asymmetry and aggression. These studies reveal conflicting results. In this study, we examined the relationship between bodily symmetry and self‐reported aggressive behavior in healthy young people living in Turkey.