Sex Determination

Title
Sex Determination
Publication Date
2011
Author(s)
Dawson, Charlotte
Ross, Duncan
Mallett, Xanthe
Editor
Editor(s): Sue Black and Eilidh Ferguson
Type of document
Book Chapter
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
CRC Press
Place of publication
Boca Raton, United States of America
Edition
1
DOI
10.1201/b10727-4
UNE publication id
une:10154
Abstract
Sex determination is the classification of an individual as either male or female. This evaluation is an integral part of a biological profile, which also includes the assessment of age, living stature, and ancestral origin. To achieve an assignation of sex, the anthropologist uses biological traits of the skeletal system that vary between the sexes for functional reasons. This variation is exhibited in soft and hard tissue (Plavcan 2001). This analysis is based on the maxim that function dictates form, so the purpose an element undertakes will dictate what that element looks like and how it responds to biomechanical loading and stress. Largely, forensic anthropology focuses on sexing skeletal remains, with little or no associated soft tissue.
Link
Citation
Forensic Anthropology: 2000 to 2010, p. 61-94
ISBN
9781439845899
9781439845882
Start page
61
End page
94

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