Get a Grip: Variation in Human Hand Grip Strength and Implications for Human Evolution

Although hand grip strength is critical to the daily lives of humans and our arboreal great ape relatives, human has changed in form function throughout evolution due terrestrial bipedalism, tool use, directional asymmetry (DA) such as handedness. Here we investigate how interact modern gain an insight into evolutionary past. We measured a heterogeneous, cross-sectional sample participants (n = 662, 17 83 years old) test potential effects age, sex, (hand dominance handedness), shape, occupation, practice sports musical instruments that involve hand(s). found significant effect sex on strength, but not handedness, while shape age had greater influence female strength. Females were significantly weaker with females large hands was less affected than those long hands. Frequent engagement increased non-dominant both sexes, only males showed indicating different patterns asymmetries function. These results improve understanding link between offer laterality dexterity.