{"id":{"repo_id":"buffalo","oai_identifier":"oai:ubir.buffalo.edu:10477/86670"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/buffalo/oai:ubir.buffalo.edu:10477/86670","repository":{"repo_id":"buffalo","name":"Buffalo","base_url":"https://ubir.buffalo.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"An Integrative Assessment of the Pattern and Causes of Bilateral Asymmetry Across the Human Skeleton","abstract":"Ph.D.","abstract_html":"Ph.D.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Eriksen, Amandine; 0000-0003-3924-6115"],"institution":"State University of New York at Buffalo","degree_name":null,"degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["von Cramon-Taubadel, Noreen","Anthropology"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-02-21T21:36:17Z","date_published":"2025-02-21T21:36:17Z","updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:05:34Z","subjects":["physical anthropology"],"languages":["eng"],"rights":["Users of works found in University at Buffalo Institutional Repository (UBIR) are responsible for identifying and contacting the copyright owner for permission to reuse. University at Buffalo Libraries do not manage rights for copyright-protected works and cannot assist with permissions.","Copyright retained by author."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://hdl.handle.net/10477/86670","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["von Cramon-Taubadel, Noreen","Anthropology"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Eriksen, Amandine; 0000-0003-3924-6115"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2025-02-21T21:36:17Z","2020"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["State University of New York at Buffalo"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Text","Dissertation"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["physical anthropology"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Users of works found in University at Buffalo Institutional Repository (UBIR) are responsible for identifying and contacting the copyright owner for permission to reuse. University at Buffalo Libraries do not manage rights for copyright-protected works and cannot assist with permissions.","Copyright retained by author."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["http://hdl.handle.net/10477/86670"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Ph.D.","In humans, the musculoskeletal system is programmed to grow symmetrically, however a wide variety of genetic and environmental stressors can interrupt its ontogenetic development, causing asymmetrical variation. There are several different classes of asymmetry, but the three forms considered here are fluctuating asymmetry (FA) (random deviations of either the right or left side of the body across a population), directional asymmetry (DA) (when one side of the body is consistently larger across a population), and individual asymmetry (IA) (pattern of asymmetry at the individual level). Previous studies have shown that asymmetry can be caused by a multitude of factors including poor nutrition, inbreeding, or biomechanical loading; however, these studies have offered confounding interpretations as they approach the potential causes of asymmetry using different a priori theoretical assumptions. Furthermore, past studies tend to focus on a single region of the body, thereby limiting the ability to understand the true source(s) of asymmetry in a coordinated manner. This dissertation addresses these shortcomings by testing a series of inter-related research hypotheses centered on patterns of fluctuating and directional asymmetry in the 3D morphology of the cranium, mandible, sacrum, os coxa, femur, tibia, humerus, and radius from a sample of 123 modern human skeletons of known age and sex, and from across three secular groups. Specifically, the null hypothesis was that all skeletal regions would display similar levels and patterns of asymmetry across the entire sample. In essence, this prediction supposes that if an individual were inherently asymmetrical due to genetic or environmental factors it would affect their entire skeleton in a coordinated manner. If this null prediction were rejected then three alternative explanations were explored; that asymmetry patterns are related to (i) the lateralization of the upper limb, (ii) developmental timing of bone formation, or (iii) evidence of generalized childhood stress. In regard to the primary null hypothesis, the results found no significant correlations in patterns of FA between any of the bones for either sex, indicating that different skeletal regions do exhibit different patterns of asymmetry...","**To request an accessible version of the file(s) associated with this item, contact library@buffalo.edu. Please include the item's persistent URL [http://hdl.handle.net/. . .] in your request.**"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["An Integrative Assessment of the Pattern and Causes of Bilateral Asymmetry Across the Human Skeleton"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["von Cramon-Taubadel, Noreen","Anthropology"],"dc:creator":["Eriksen, Amandine; 0000-0003-3924-6115"],"dc:date":["2025-02-21T21:36:17Z","2020"],"dc:description":["Ph.D.","In humans, the musculoskeletal system is programmed to grow symmetrically, however a wide variety of genetic and environmental stressors can interrupt its ontogenetic development, causing asymmetrical variation. There are several different classes of asymmetry, but the three forms considered here are fluctuating asymmetry (FA) (random deviations of either the right or left side of the body across a population), directional asymmetry (DA) (when one side of the body is consistently larger across a population), and individual asymmetry (IA) (pattern of asymmetry at the individual level). Previous studies have shown that asymmetry can be caused by a multitude of factors including poor nutrition, inbreeding, or biomechanical loading; however, these studies have offered confounding interpretations as they approach the potential causes of asymmetry using different a priori theoretical assumptions. Furthermore, past studies tend to focus on a single region of the body, thereby limiting the ability to understand the true source(s) of asymmetry in a coordinated manner. This dissertation addresses these shortcomings by testing a series of inter-related research hypotheses centered on patterns of fluctuating and directional asymmetry in the 3D morphology of the cranium, mandible, sacrum, os coxa, femur, tibia, humerus, and radius from a sample of 123 modern human skeletons of known age and sex, and from across three secular groups. Specifically, the null hypothesis was that all skeletal regions would display similar levels and patterns of asymmetry across the entire sample. In essence, this prediction supposes that if an individual were inherently asymmetrical due to genetic or environmental factors it would affect their entire skeleton in a coordinated manner. If this null prediction were rejected then three alternative explanations were explored; that asymmetry patterns are related to (i) the lateralization of the upper limb, (ii) developmental timing of bone formation, or (iii) evidence of generalized childhood stress. In regard to the primary null hypothesis, the results found no significant correlations in patterns of FA between any of the bones for either sex, indicating that different skeletal regions do exhibit different patterns of asymmetry...","**To request an accessible version of the file(s) associated with this item, contact library@buffalo.edu. Please include the item's persistent URL [http://hdl.handle.net/. . .] in your request.**"],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["http://hdl.handle.net/10477/86670"],"dc:language":["eng"],"dc:publisher":["State University of New York at Buffalo"],"dc:rights":["Users of works found in University at Buffalo Institutional Repository (UBIR) are responsible for identifying and contacting the copyright owner for permission to reuse. University at Buffalo Libraries do not manage rights for copyright-protected works and cannot assist with permissions.","Copyright retained by author."],"dc:subject":["physical anthropology"],"dc:title":["An Integrative Assessment of the Pattern and Causes of Bilateral Asymmetry Across the Human Skeleton"],"dc:type":["Text","Dissertation"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:05:34Z"}