Physical Education

Unit 1

1.3.Sheldon's Somatotypes
"William Sheldon (1898-1977) was an American psychologist who devoted his life to observing the variety of human bodies and temperaments. He taught and did research at a number of U.S.universities and is best known for his series of books on the human constitution. He was a keen observer of animals and birds as a child, and he turned this talent to good effect by becoming an avid people-watcher, and out of his observations he gradually elaborated his typology." from Tracking the Elusive Human.
In the 1940s, Sheldon developed a theory that there are three basic body types, or somatotypes (based on the three tissue layers: endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm), each associated with personality characteristics, representing a correlation between physique and temperament.