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Finger length key to success?
PNAS
Success may go hand in hand with finger length in men, according to scientists
"The link in finger length and success could be down to the amount of testosterone a foetus is exposed to in the womb"
Scientists at Cambridge University have found that male financial traders in the City whose ring fingers are longer than their index fingers make the most money.
The link in finger length and success could be down to the amount of testosterone a foetus is exposed to in the womb, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found.
Exposure to a greater the amount of the hormone means the subject may possess quicker decision-making skills, improved concentration and testosterone is also linked with aggression. Combined, all of these characteristics can be key to success in the cut-throat financial market.
The study was carried out over a period of 20 months on 44 city traders in London, some of whom earned in excess of £4 million a year.
Findings discovered that traders with longer ring fingers in relation to their index fingers made up to eleven times more money than those with shorter ring fingers.
The study also looked at the years of experience each trader had in the job, and found that the "biological" effect was almost equal to that of experience. Results showed that the more experienced workers in the study group made nine times more than the less experiences ones.
The study was an extension of researcher John Coates' work last year, which revealed a link between testosterone levels and short term success. He found that City traders who had high levels of testosterone in the morning tended to make an unusually large profit that day.
Researchers in Belgium have also been studying the trend of ring finger length to aggression and sociability. Findings have so far shown that after watching aggressive movies men with longer ring fingers become less “socially minded” that those with shorter ones. They were less likely to give money to a participant of the study, while men with shorter ring fingers gave away the most money.
Lead researcher Kobe Millet said:
"These results tell us that levels of testosterone people are exposed to before birth go on to affect their behaviour throughout their lives."
