HUMAN FLUCTUATING ASYMMETRY AND SEXUAL-BEHAVIOR

This report presents evidence that sexual selection may favor developm ental stability (i.e., the absence of fluctuating asymmetry) in humans . Subtle, heritable asymmetries in seven nonfacial human body traits c orrelated negatively with number of self-reported, lifetime sex partne rs and correlated positively with self-reported age at first copulatio n in a college student sample. These relationships remained statistica lly significant when age, marital status, body height, ethnicity, phys ical anomalies associated with early prenatal development, and physica l attractiveness were statistically controlled. The strength of the re lationships did not differ significantly as a function of sex. It is u nlikely that the relationships are generated by false self-reporting o f sexual experience.