Random errors in anthropometry

In order to present basic information on the magnitude of and variance due to the random error in anthropometry, 219 measurement items were taken on 12 subjects twice by the same observer. The precision (i.e., consistency between the repeated measurements) was investigated for these measurement items. The reliability was quantified using mean absolute difference (MAD), technical error of measurement (TEM), and reliability coefficient (R). MAD and TEM are highly correlated with each other and both represent the magnitude of error. They are not correlated with R, which represents the proportion of error-free variance. Larger measurements tend to have absolutely larger but relatively smaller random errors and higher reliability in the size range of 1-10 cm. Imprecision is inherent in anthropometry of the living because of the fact that the human body is not rigid. This may be responsible for the above tendency. Relatively large MAD and low R may be due to small absolute size, landmarks difficult to locate precisely, soft tissue deformation, and the inconsistency of the posture of the subject.