2D:4D indizearen zeharkako neurketa: software bidezko irudien analisiaren behatzaile arteko/barneko fidagarritasuna

Abstract

Sex hormones have effect on brain structures and so, on human behaviors. A non-invasive indicator of prenatal sex hormone exposure is the 2D:4D index. Previous literature on its reliability indicated that software analysis methods are the most reliable ones, but, still, there is no consensus in which program should be used. The objectives of the present study are, to analyze the intraobserver and interobserver reliability, to explore the measurements´economy, and, to study sex differences in the index. Scans of hands of 180 11 years-old participants´ were collected, and measurements were done using GIMP and AutoMetric programs. Results showed that although AutoMetric is a faster program, GIMP presented higher intra and interobserver reliability. Regarding sex differences, we did not found differences in the ratios.  To sum up, further research should be carried out on this subject, because of the few studies analyzing differences in image analysis methods.