Homogamy and imprinting-like effect on mate choice preference for body height in the current Japanese population

Abstract

Background: Homogamy for body height has been repeatedly documented in Western societies. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanism is unclear and the reasons for its apparent absence in non-Western societies remain unexplained.

Aim: This study investigates spousal correlation and mate preference for height in the Japanese population.

Subjects and methods: This study analyses self-reported data on the height of individuals, their parents and their ideal marriage partners, collected by a series of questionnaires on university students.

Results: In contrast to a previous study, this study found a significant positive correlation between the heights of Japanese spouses, after controlling for age. It also found a positive correlation between the heights of subjects and of their ideal partners, suggesting that an individual's self-referent preference may contribute to the observed homogamy for height. However, a subject's preference is also influenced by the height of his/her opposite-sex—but not same-sex—parent, where this effect is more prominent in male subjects.

Conclusion: This study shows that homogamy for body height is present in the current Japanese population and that it may in part result from an individual's preference. It also indicates a possible role of a sexual imprinting-like mechanism in human mate choice.

Keywords::

• Assortative mating
• stature
• sexual imprinting
• human evolution
• path analysis

Acknowledgements

We thank Kanako Seki and Hitomi Iwasaki for their help. We appreciate the thought-provoking comments of Dr Norikazu Yasuda in the early stage of this study. We also appreciate the constructive suggestions of the anonymous reviewers. This study was partially supported by Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.