Heights and human welfare : recent developments and new directions

Author / Creator

Steckel, Richard H. (Richard Hall), 1944-

Available as

Online

Summary

Since 1995 approximately 300 publications on stature have appeared in the social sciences, which is a five-fold increase in the rate of production relative to the period 1977-1994. The expansion oc...

Since 1995 approximately 300 publications on stature have appeared in the social sciences, which is a five-fold increase in the rate of production relative to the period 1977-1994. The expansion occurred in several areas, but especially within economics, indicating that heights have become a traditional source of evidence for study of human welfare. Much of this work extends beyond the traditional bailiwick of anthropometric history, including biological welfare during economic and political crises; anthropometric determinants of wages; the welfare of women relative to men in the contemporary world; the fetal origins hypothesis; and inequality in the developing world. The approach has also expanded within economic history to consider the consequences of empire for colonials; the health of populations lacking traditional measures of social performance; the consequences of smallpox; and very long-term trends in health. Much has also been learned about socioeconomic aspects of inequality, the welfare implications of industrialization, and socioeconomic determinants of stature. The last is a work in progress and one may doubt whether sufficient longitudinal evidence will become available for a complete understanding of the variety and strength of pathways that affect human physical growth.

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