Size Matters Stature Is Related to Diagnoses of Depression in Young Military Men

Valery Krupnik and Mariya V. Cherkasova

SAGE Open, 2014, vol. 4, issue 3, 2158244014542783

Abstract: Evolutionary theories suggest that depression has evolved as an adaptation to insurmountable adversity or defeat. One prediction stemming from these models is that individual attributes associated with defeat in a given social environment could be risk factors for depression. We hypothesized that in young military men, where physical prowess was important, short stature might constitute a risk of depression and that this risk would be specific to depression and not to other prevalent mental disorders such as anxiety. A preliminary analysis of the diagnostic profile of a sample of male military personnel treated for mental health indicates that men both shorter and taller than average by 1 standard deviation may be predisposed to higher rates of depressive but not anxiety disorders. Practical and theoretical implications of our findings are discussed.

Keywords: depression; anxiety; height; adaptation; involuntary subordination (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:sagope:v:4:y:2014:i:3:p:2158244014542783

DOI: 10.1177/2158244014542783

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