Authors
Dr. Kanika Chhikara
Abstract
Hand biometry involves measuring and analysing unique physical characteristics of the hand for identification and forensic purposes. The hand's unique morphology and individual variations make it an effective biometric identifier, useful for personal identification and linking individuals to crime scenes. The shape and size of the hand, determined by genetics and developmental processes, remain consistent throughout a person's life, making them reliable and difficult to alter. However, in India, such databases are limited, and population variation can impact the accuracy of hand biometric identification. Combined with other forensic techniques, hand biometry enhances the accuracy and reliability of personal identification in investigations. This study aims to analyse the sexual dimorphism and discriminant functions for sex estimation from the hand in the adult Haryanvi population. A total of 26 hand variables (left and right side) were measured on 113 males and 102 females with the help of vernier callipers. SPSS 21.0 was used for statistical analysis. Student’s T-test showed a significant difference between males and females. The statistical analysis revealed high significant differences between the sexes. Discriminant function analysis revealed a sex classification accuracy of 98.1% accuracy using 7 variables. The findings of this research demonstrate that hand variables could be used to estimate sex. It is used for forensic identification, especially in cases involving mutilated or decomposed remains from mass disasters or other incidents. The results of the present study can be used in different forensic scenarios for sex estimation as well as in clinical and anthropological settings. Keywords: Hand Biometry, Forensic Purposes, Sex Estimation, Sexual Dimorphism
Introduction
Forensic anthropometry is the science of investigating different body dimensions and ratios of the human body for identification (Choong et al., 2023). Utilizing metric methods, anthropologists can individualize by constructing a biological profile, including the big fours- age, sex, stature, and ethnicity for narrowing the pool of potential suspects (Celbis and Hasan, 2006) This becomes important in challenging cases such as mass disasters, and homicides, where identifying dismembered remains is crucial. Therefore, these anthropometric dimensions can be used to create sex and stature estimation models that are population-specific.
Hands as a tool for identification is increasingly becoming valuable for forensic identification as the dimensions and ratios provide insight into the sexual dimorphism of a population (Gheat et al., 2020) The complex structure, comprising multiple bones, muscles, and connective tissues, provides a wealth of measurable variables, which collectively contribute to a comprehensive assessment of sexual dimorphism. It is further underscored by their application in scenarios where mutilated or partial remains are recovered. Discriminant function models can be developed to classify sex with considerable accuracy (Soler, 2013) Many researchers also believe that exposure to different sex hormones (testosterone and estrogen) during early embryonic development leads to finger length variations is regulated by HOX genes (Ventura et al., 2013; Morgan, 1997). It plays a crucial role in specifying characteristics and patterning of anatomical structures in the human body (Hafez and Shahin).
There is a lot of research being carried out internationally for stature estimation but the data is substantially less for sex estimation. Furthermore, the Haryanvi population is still underexplored for estimating these models. Hence, the present study aims to address this lacuna in research by adding to the database for sex estimation from the hands of this population.
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| APA Style | Chhikara, Dr. K. (2024). Hand Anthropometry For Forensic Identification And Sex Estimation In The Haryanvi Population. Academic Journal of Anthropological Studies, 07(02), 06–13. |
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