Ma. Arden et L. Dye, THE ASSESSMENT OF MENSTRUAL SYNCHRONY - COMMENT ON WELLER AND WELLER (1997), Journal of comparative psychology, 112(3), 1998, pp. 323-324
A. Weller and L. Weller (1997) claimed to report ''the definitive stud
y of menstrual synchrony'' (p. 148). To allow for cycle variability, t
hey used the following criterion for synchrony: It occurred in 2 out o
f 3 months. The underlying assumption of the state of menstrual synchr
ony is that cycle length variability is minimal. The present article u
ses a random selection of cycle lengths from a distribution described
by R. F. Vollman (1977) to illustrate how variable cycle lengths cause
a fluctuation from synchrony to a synchrony. A. Weller and L. Weller'
s (1997) study is not, therefore, conclusive, and future studies of me
nstrual synchrony should include an assessment of cycle variability as
well as onset difference.