Brief Communication: Facial Fluctuating Asymmetry as a Marker of Sex Differences of the Response to Phenotypic Stresses

Abstract

Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) is thought to increase as a result of environmental perturbations during development. A number of studies involving measures of health and developmental stability other than FA have discussed the presumed increased buffering in females relative to males. But, there is little evidence in the literature on FA to support this hypothesis. This research was conducted to determine the level of difference in terms of facial FA between sexes under different environmental conditions. Group 1 included final year students from three high schools in Yenimahalle, a slum district of Ankara (males: N = 163, mean age = 17.55, sd = 0.50; females: N = 141, mean age = 17.48, sd = 0.38). Group 2 included students with higher socio-economic background and was composed of final year students from three different private schools located in Cankaya (N = 171, mean age = 17.44, sd = 0.26; females: N = 152, mean age = 17.38, sd = 0.31). Digital images were used to assess the degree of facial asymmetry as measured from eight paired traits and calculated as a composite score. The study shows that the male students had higher facial asymmetry than the female students. However, the present difference reaches a significant level in the low-socioeconomic status group. As a result, it could be inferred that differences in developmental stability between sexes might emerge under stressful conditions. Am J Phys Anthropol 143:321-324, 2010. (C) 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.