Adolphe Quetelet
Sarah Whitaker
Definition / Background
Adolphe Quetelet, Belgian statistician born in 1796, is considered a pioneer among statisticians for being the first to apply statistics and probability theories (a relatively new field) to social behavior and phenomena (Schlager 2001).
One way Quetelet attempted to introduce social physics as a viable field of study was through his theory of “l’homme moyen,” or, the average man. Quetelet studied a French population and collected data on their bodies, finances, family, etc. and then averaged all recorded traits in order to create this fictitious man. According to Quetelet, this man would be the “ideal” of society: he would not suffer the woes of the elite nor those of the dirt poor (Davis 1995). The purpose of this theory was to serve as a simplified way to study the population whose averaged traits created the average man. According to Quetelet, those who fell far beyond the bounds of the average are merely errors, and should not be considered when analyzing population statistics (Robin 2008). Further, in his essay “A Treatise of Man and the Development of his Faculties,” Quetelet wanted to deconstruct mankind in a way. His three goals in this work were to define the laws which regulate man’s development (i.e. reproduction, intellectual growth, etc.), quantify how much natural forces influence mankind, and to determine the role of mankind in affecting its society (Quetelet 1842 8). To accomplish these goals, Quetelet believes he must use one standard to represent mankind: the average man (Quetelet 1842 9).
Quetelet’s “l’homme moyen” theory served as the principle for his later-developed “physique sociale” (social physics) theory, which attempted to use statistics and calculus to explain social phenomena (Porter 1985). Essentially, individuals within a society are studied considering that society’s external factors and laws. The results from that study are then used to explain what one would observe in that society, such as general health of the population, crime rates, etc. Although this seems to be common practice in modern terms, in the early-mid nineteenth century, such ideas were revolutionary and highly controversial (Sheynin 1986).
Historical / Global Context
Before Quetelet introduced his theory of “la physique sociale” (social physics), statistics and probability were still new fields, of which many astronomers and mathematicians were skeptical. In fact, although the first publication which discussed probability theory was printed in 1657, it took over fifty years for such a text to be published in the English language, which indicates that British and other anglo-saxon were not even concerned with such theories until Abraham de Moivre’s 1719 text The Doctrine of Chances. In this work, de Moivre introduced the normal curve, a distribution plot which is used ubiquitously today, and is commonly referred to as a bell curve (Schlager 2001).
However, even after probability theory had been accepted in the fields of astronomy and physics, still no one had successfully applied such theories to the social realm. It was, in fact, insurance companies who represented the largest need for such an application. Many actuaries found that their clients who weighed more than the typical client had a far higher death rate, but since their work was just based off of guesswork, they had no way to quantify this pattern (Schlager 2001). After several attempts by actuaries to discover a link between one’s bodily measurements and their health, Quetelet created the Quetelet Index, which would later be renamed the Body Mass Index (BMI) (Eknoyan 2007).
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Today, Quetelet’s theories are widely used in many domains. Not only are population statistics now standard measurements of a country’s development, wealth, etc., but criminologist Piers Beirne argues that Quetelet’s essay Research on the Propensity for Crime at Different Ages actually laid the groundwork for positive criminology, the examination of external factors which can result in criminal acts. In this essay, Quetelet evaluates the specific types of environments which lead to the prosperity of crime and determined a constant ratio of crimes convicted and crimes committed (Beirne 1987).
Another modern example of the prevalence of Quetelet’s work is the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. This survey collects data on chosen individuals’ overall health, exercise and diet habits, and general wellbeing. This data is then used to evaluate health trends among populations to influence policymaking, health campaigns, etc. (Resnick 2013). Unlike Quetelet’s work, however, NHANES does not seek to create an average mold which all individuals should strive to fit into. Rather, NHANES collects data on every participant and uses the general trend as a mere guide for policymaking.
Controversies
Although population statistics are widely used today, they were fairly controversial when Quetelet first introduced them. In fact, Maurice Halbwachs dedicated an entire book to discrediting Quetelet’s theories. Halbwachs believed that, since individuals within a population are all related and not independent of each other, Quetelet’s theories are invalid as probability theory cannot be applied to such a group. Halbwachs also argues that the social phenomena which Quetelet attempts to explain with his theory of social physics do not require an explanation, as their mere existence is law enough (Hankins 1913).
Further, many other academics have criticized aspects of Quetelet’s theories. Some believe that Quetelet does not account for free will and an individual’s ability to make decisions independent of their society. Others believe that the basis for Quetelet’s “l’homme moyen” theory is invalid, as these critics believe the deviations from the average are far more compelling research studies than the mean of all values (Robin 2008).
Author of Enforcing Normalcy: Disability, Deafness, and the Body Lennard J. Davis makes an even bolder claim in his chapter entitled “Constructing Normalcy.” In this chapter, Davis discusses Quetelet’s claim that nature aims towards the average, and those who fall within the bounds of the average will attempt to normalize those who do not. According to Davis, ideas such like these can actually stigmatize those who do not at least somewhat fit the mold of Quetelet’s average man, including those who suffer from a disability (Davis 1995).
Politics of Health
Today, population statistics and theories of probability have a large role in the politics of health. For example, insurance companies adjust their coverage and rates for clients based on their general health, which is often measured by indexes such as BMI, etc. Further, by recording data relating to diseases, illnesses, etc. which plague a certain society and recognizing patterns within said data, healthcare officials are able to create policies targeted to a specific population. For example, given Quetelet’s claim that nature aims towards the average, if the normal distribution curve for the presence of a certain illness or disease among a population shifted, healthcare officials could enact policies to help the population regain its previous state. In addition, Quetelet’s work is an example of the pursuit of normalcy, the idea that human beings strive to be the exact “average” of everything. Quetelet’s interest in the average of all traits, and his idea that deviations from the average should not be encouraged, are similar to our modern concept of normalcy. This is reflected in the fact that institutions today, such as government and hospitals, encourage adherence to the norm, and suggest methods such as pharmaceutical intervention to achieve this norm.
Bibliography
Beirne, Piers. “Adolphe Quetelet and Origins of Positivist Criminology.” American Journal of Sociology, 1987, 1140-69. http://www.jstor.org.
Davis, Lennard J. “Constructing Normalcy.” In Enforcing Normalcy: Disability, Deafness, and the Body, 23-49. 1995. Digital file.
Eknoyan, Garabed. “Adolphe Quetelet (1796–1874)—the Average Man and Indices of Obesity.” Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation, 2007. https://academic.oup.com.
Hankins, F. H. Review of La Theorie de l’Homme Moyen. Essai sur Quetelet et la Statistique Morale. The American Economic Review, 1913. http://www.jstor.org.
Porter, Theodore M. “The Mathematics of Society: Variation and Error in Quetelet’s Statistics.” The British Journal for the History of Science, 1985, 51-69. http://www.jstor.org.
Quetelet, Adolphe. A Treatise on Man and the Development of His Faculties. Cambridge University Press, 1842. https://books.google.com.
Resnick, B. (2013). National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). In M. D. Gellman (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com
Robin, Young. “Adolphe Quetelet.” In Notable Mathematicians. N.p., 2008. http://ic.galegroup.com/.
Schlager, Neil. “The Rise of Probabilistic and Statistical Thinking.” In Science and Its Times. N.p., 2001. http://ic.galegroup.com/.
Sheynin, O. B. “A. Quetelet as a Statistician.” Archive for History of Exact Sciences, 1986, 281-325. http://www.jstor.org.
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