Vol,. 6, 1920 
ANTHROPOLOGY: F. BOAS 
489 
2 Shapley, Harlow and Davis, Helen N., Astrophys. J., Chicago, III, 51, 1920 (140- 
178). 
3 Von Zeipel, H., Annales de VOhservatoire de Paris, Memoires, 25, 1908 (Fl-FlOl). 
4 Shapley, Harlow, These Proceedings, 6, 1920 (293-300). 
^Ibid., ML Wilson Contribution No. 155, 1917 (1-12); No. 175, 1919 (1-13), p. 10. 
THE INFLUENCE OF ENVIRONMENT UPON DEVELOPMENT 
By Franz Boas 
Columbia University, N. Y. 
Read before the Academy, April 27, 1920 
During the last ten years I have carried on a number of investigations 
on the relative influences of heredity and environment upon human types. 
On the whole the results shovir that each hereditary type can be con- 
sidered as stable only in a stable environment, and that with a change of 
environment, many of the characteristic features of the body undergo 
changes. These results have been corroborated later on by investiga- 
tions on immigrants in Boston and in certain respects also by Dr. Hrdlicka's 
observations on Americans whose ancestors have been residents of this 
co4tinent for several generations. 
Ever since Gould and Baxter's investigations on the soldiers enlisted 
during the war of the Rebellion and since Bowditch's investigations of 
Boston school children, it has been known that the bulk of the body 
differs not only according to descent, but also according to social position 
of the child. The children of the poor are not so tall as the children of the 
well-to-do. We have, however, never been able to establish definitely 
whether children who are small for their ages will also be small as adults, 
or whether a compensatory growth occurs during the period of adolescence. 
I have shown in previous investigations that children who are retarded 
will at a later time have a much more rapid growth than children who in the 
early years of their lives are accelerated. This observation has been 
confirmed by a study of material which I placed at the disposal of Dr. 
Wissler. At that time, however, we were not in a position to extend these 
observations up to the adult stage. 
Through the courtesy of Mr. Wilson Farrand, Headmaster of the 
Newark Academy, I have been able to collect observations on about 120 
individuals whose measurements extend from the 11th year to adult life. 
The study of this series shows conclusively that from 11 years on, a short 
child will also be on the average short as an adult, while a tall child will be 
tall as an adult. The absolute amount of increment for a short child, 
from the age of 11 years up is, however, considerably larger than the 
total increment for a tall child of the same age, so that the previous ob- 
servation may be extended for the whole period of growth. It seems 
likely that the relation between initial stature and increment will be 
