+Strength

  • Grip strength, an index of upper body strength, is highly sexually dimorphic: 90% of men are stronger than 90% of women.
  • Razib khan - “but my wife is an athletic scandinavian-origin woman who is my height. i can still ‘destroy’ her.”

Depression

  • Rosenström & Hagen found that the sex diff in depression is largely “explained” (ie correlated) by differences in strength. The sex diff in depression is mostly a formidability difference: physically stronger individuals, men or women, had lower rates of depression.
  • Possible mechanism - Most depression is caused by adversity, and both are strongly linked to conflict. Assault is perhaps the most potent risk factor for depression. Physical formidability might protect individuals from assault and help them prevail in a wide range of conflicts, thus reducing risk of depression.