Paul L. Jamison

Craniofacial variability index : A simple measure of normal and abnormal variation in the head and face

We propose a numerical means of increasing the objectivity of describing, characterizing, and evaluating craniofacial morphology, including dysmorphology. A craniofacial variability index (CVI) can be created for an individual by obtaining a series of anthropometric measurements of the head and face, converting each measurement value to a standardized z-score, and then calculating the standard deviation for the whole set of these z-score values. This value is lowest for those faces in which all of the z-scores are in the same direction and of relatively the same magnitude and highest for faces with pronounced difference in direction and size of the individual z-scores. The CVI has a range of values with an approximately normal distribution in a reference population of 1,312 individuals. Examination of a small sample of individuals with known craniofacial syndromes indicates that the CVI in such cases consistently falls outside of the normal range of the index, and its value is highest in individuals with the greatest subjective degree of facial involvement. Finally, the CVI is robust: age, sex, size of the individual, and changes in the number of variables used in its calculation have little impact on its distribution. When used in conjunction with traditional clinical assessment, the CVI has a number of potential clinical applications including initial diagnostic screening, demonstrating age-related changes in postnatal development of patients with facial syndromes, and pre- and post-surgical assessments of individuals with craniofacial anomalies.

Patterns of human growth, 2nd edition

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Secular trends and the pattern of growth in arctic populations

Examinations of growth patterns in Arctic populations suggest that Inuit/Inupiat (Eskimo) children display a unique pattern relative to European or continental U.S. children. This pattern--high weight for height--becomes established early in life and it has existed for as long as researchers have Inuit or Inupiat data. This paper will examine the growth pattern relative to the NCHS reference standard, using recent data from the Arctic and several indices combining height and weight. Of particular concern will be the persistence of this pattern in the face of secular trends in growth that have occurred over the past 50 years. Trends for height increase have been greater than those for weight but weight for height still remains well above the 50th percentile of the U.S. reference for these Arctic groups.

Multi-age-grouping paradigm for young swimmers

Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine the adequacy of “multi-age” classification systems in youth sports with a specific focus on the unisex multi-age-groupings used by USA Swimming. In addition, we offer an analytical rationale for the multi-age-groupings and potential alternatives. We examined the top 100 US swim performances for three years (2005, 2006, and 2007) for girls and boys in 15 age-groups (7 to 20 years and a singular group of 21 years and older). Data for each age and sex were pooled over the three years and means were calculated for each of seven competitive swim events. Swim times differed among each age up to the 14-year age-group in girls (F 14,30885 = 183.9, P < 0.01, Cohens d = 1.19–3.72, large effect) and 16-year age-group in boys (F 14,30885 = 308.7, P < 0.01, Cohens d = 0.81–3.64, large effect) for all events. Age-related differences in swim times continued later in boys than girls likely due to differences between the sexes in timing of growth and maturation. Because of the differences in swim performance in contemporary multi-age-groups, stratifying swimmers by a single age is the best means to ensure competitive fairness and equality, although there is no rationale for swimmers under the age of 8 years to compete in separate unisex competitive groups.

The relative rate of maturation and its psychological effect

Growth and psychological data for 74 participants in the Fels Longitudinal Study are analyzed to determine the influence of the relative timing of maturation upon psychological attributes related to interests abilities self-confidence peer relationships and future goals. It is suggested that neither age at peak height velocity for either sex nor age of menarche for girls represents an adequate measurement of relative maturity status. A new variable that can be used for both sexes relative maturity is suggested and computed using peak height velocity as well as the additional information gained from the percentage of adult stature achieved at that time. Results of separate significance tests using peak height velocity and relative maturity as independent variables reveal early maturers to be more self-confident in specific abilities and also more gregarious during adolescence with higher educational and vocational expectations for the future while the later maturer is less likely to be influenced by his peers and to have less ambitious long-range goals. (authors)

Anthropology and statistics

van Vark, G. N. and W. W. Howells, eds. Multivariate Statistical Methods in Physical Anthropology. Dordrecht, Holland: Reidel, 1984. x 4‐ 433 pp. including illustrations, references, and subject index.

Assortative mating in monozygotic twins

61.00 cloth. De Meur, Gisele, ed. New Trends in Mathematical Anthropology. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1986. xx + 315 pp. including illustrations and references.

Body mass prediction from stature and bi-iliac breadth in two high latitude populations, with application to earlier higher latitude humans.

39.95 cloth.

Are all grandmothers equal? A review and a preliminary test of the grandmother hypothesis in Tokugawa Japan

This study investigated assortative mating in a series of monozygotic twins in terms of anthropometric variables. Initially the twins were analyzed independent of each other, and the results showed fairly clear homogamy among female MZ twins and their spouses, after correcting for age. Further, when stature was partialled out, several anthropometric measures remained significantly correlated. The results for male MZ twins and their spouses were not nearly so clear-cut. A second analysis treated the co-twins together, and once again, the female MZ sets tended to show assortative mate choice for stature while the male MZ twins/spouses were not significantly correlated. A follow-up analysis investigated whether husbands of the female twins were correlated to each other, and negative results were found for all of the 46 anthropometric variables. An apparent contradiction was resolved in the case of stature by regressing spouse stature against that of the co-twins. It was found that although each of the twins was assortatively mating, one member of the twin set consistently married a taller husband, but the difference was not constant. This had the effect of producing divergent regression lines.