{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,9]],"date-time":"2026-10-09T07:51:00Z","timestamp":1791532260993,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":54,"publisher":"The Royal Society","issue":"1792","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2014,10,7]],"date-time":"2014-10-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1412640000000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/royalsociety.org\/journals\/ethics-policies\/data-sharing-mining\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["royalsocietypublishing.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Proc. R. Soc. B."],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2014,10,7]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>The idea that symmetry in facial traits is associated with attractiveness because it reliably indicates good physiological health, particularly to potential sexual partners, has generated an extensive literature on the evolution of human mate choice. However, large-scale tests of this hypothesis using direct or longitudinal assessments of physiological health are lacking. Here, we investigate relationships between facial fluctuating asymmetry (FA) and detailed individual health histories in a sample (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>= 4732) derived from a large longitudinal study (Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children) in South West England. Facial FA was assessed using geometric morphometric analysis of facial landmark configurations derived from three-dimensional facial scans taken at 15 years of age. Facial FA was not associated with longitudinal measures of childhood health. However, there was a very small negative association between facial FA and IQ that remained significant after correcting for a positive allometric relationship between FA and face size. Overall, this study does not support the idea that facial symmetry acts as a reliable cue to physiological health. Consequently, if preferences for facial symmetry do represent an evolved adaptation, then they probably function not to provide marginal fitness benefits by choosing between relatively healthy individuals on the basis of small differences in FA, but rather evolved to motivate avoidance of markers of substantial developmental disturbance and significant pathology.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1098\/rspb.2014.1639","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2014,8,13]],"date-time":"2014-08-13T16:18:58Z","timestamp":1407946738000},"page":"20141639","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1098\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":57,"title":["Facial fluctuating asymmetry is not associated with childhood ill-health in a large British cohort study"],"prefix":"10.1098","volume":"281","author":[{"given":"Nicholas","family":"Pound","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences, Brunel University, London UB8 3PH, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"David W.","family":"Lawson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Arshed M.","family":"Toma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Applied Clinical Research and Public Health, Orthodontic Department, School of Dentistry, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stephen","family":"Richmond","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Applied Clinical Research and Public Health, Orthodontic Department, School of Dentistry, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alexei I.","family":"Zhurov","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Applied Clinical Research and Public Health, Orthodontic Department, School of Dentistry, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ian S.","family":"Penton-Voak","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"175","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2014,10,7]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_4_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.es.17.110186.002135"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1558-5646.1962.tb03206.x"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"62","DOI":"10.1093\/oso\/9780195143454.003.0005","volume-title":"Developmental instability: causes and consequences","author":"Gangestad SW","year":"2003"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1093\/oso\/9780198548959.001.0001","volume-title":"Asymmetry, developmental stability, and evolution","author":"M\u00f8ller AP","year":"1997"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_6_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/S0006323197005082"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_7_2","first-page":"333","volume-title":"The Oxford handbook of evolutionary psychology","author":"Rhodes G","year":"2007"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_8_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.psych.57.102904.190208"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_9_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.evolhumbehav.2011.03.002"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_10_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"220","DOI":"10.1086\/303223","article-title":"Detecting publication bias in meta-analyses: a case study of fluctuating asymmetry and sexual selection","volume":"154","author":"Palmer AR","year":"1999","journal-title":"Am. 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