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Somatotype is a theory proposed in the 1940s by the American psychologist William Herbert Sheldon to categorize the human physique according to the relative contribution of three fundamental elements which he termed somatotypes, classified by him as ectomorphic, mesomorphic, and endomorphic. He created these terms borrowing from the three germ layers of embryonic development: The endoderm (which develops into the digestive tract), the mesoderm (which becomes muscle, heart, and blood vessels) and the ectoderm (which forms the skin and nervous system).[1] Later variations of these categories, developed by his original research assistant Barbara Heath, and later by Lindsay Carter and Rob Rempel, are used by academics today.[2][3]
Constitutional psychology is a theory developed by Sheldon in the 1940s, which attempted to associate his somatotype classifications with human temperament types.[4][5] The foundation of these ideas originated with Francis Galton and eugenics.[2] Sheldon and Earnest Hooton were seen as leaders of a school of thought, popular in anthropology at the time, which held that the size and shape of a person's body indicated intelligence, moral worth and future achievement.[2]
In his 1954 book, Atlas of Men, Sheldon categorized all possible body types according to a scale ranging from 1 to 7 for each of the three somatotypes, where the pure endomorph is 7–1–1, the pure mesomorph 1–7–1 and the pure ectomorph scores 1–1–7.[6][7][8] From type number, an individual's mental characteristics could supposedly be predicted.[7] In a late version of a pseudoscientific thread within criminology in which criminality is claimed to be an innate characteristic that can be recognized through particular physiognomic markers (as in Cesare Lombroso's theory of phrenology), Sheldon contended that criminals tended to be 'mesomorphic'.[9] The system of somatotyping is still in use in the field of physical education.[10]
- ^ Hollin, Clive R. (2012). Psychology and Crime: An introduction to criminological psychology. Routledge. p. 59. ISBN 978-0415497039.
- ^ a b c Vertinsky, P. (2007). "Physique as destiny: William H. Sheldon, Barbara Honeyman Heath, and the struggle for hegemony in the science of somatotyping". Canadian Bulletin of Medical History. 24 (2): 291–316. doi:10.3138/cbmh.24.2.291. PMID 18447308.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Roeckelein1998was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Rafter, N. (2008). "Somatotyping, antimodernism, and the production of criminological knowledge". Criminology. 45 (4): 805–33. doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.2007.00092.x.
- ^ "Constitutional Theory". The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology. Penguin Books. 2009. ISBN 9780141030241 – via Credo Reference.
- ^ Mull, Amanda (2018-11-06). "Americans can't escape long-disproven body stereotypes". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2018-12-31.
- ^ a b Sheldon, W.H. (1954). Atlas of Men: A guide for somatotyping the adult male at all ages. New York: Harper.
- ^ Kamlesh, M.L. (2011). "Ch. 15: Personality and sport § Sheldon's constitutional typology". Psychology in the Physical Education and Sport. Pinnacle Technology. ISBN 9781618202482.[permanent dead link]
- ^ di Cristina, Bruce; Gottschalk, Martin; Mayzer, Roni (2014). "Four currents of criminological thought". In Bruce Arrigo; Heather Bersot (eds.). The Routledge Handbook of International Crime and Justice Studies. Routledge. pp. 13–15. ISBN 978-1-136-86850-4.
- ^ Kathirgamam, Vijayakumar; Ambike, Mandar; Bokan, Raju; Bharambe, Vaishaly; Prasad, Arun (2020-04-15). "Analyzing the effects of exercise prescribed based on health-related fitness assessment among different somatotypes". Journal of Health Sciences. 10 (1): 83–89. doi:10.17532/jhsci.2020.876. ISSN 1986-8049. S2CID 218816659.