Design and Product Development

A Comparative Anthropometric Analysis of Female Firefighters versus the General U.S. Female Population

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Abstract

The purpose of this research was to determine if female firefighters in the U.S. are anthropometrically different from the general female population to best inform the design of women's personal protective clothing for the fire service. A comparative analysis contrasting two distinct samples of anthropometric datasets were compared. The first and largest U.S. female firefighter database (n=187), produced by the researchers' previous study, was compared to the USA Size North America survey collected by Humanetics and included U.S. women ages 18-55 (n=4632). Three-dimensional body scanning was utilized to collect both databases. Primary measures of height and bust circumference were identified. On average, female firefighters were found to be 6.7cm taller than the general population. Findings suggest the female firefighter sample in this study had a more uniform, upper body shape and a larger lower body, leg circumference (by 2 cm) compared to the general population. 

Keywords: Anthropometric, Firefighter, Body Scanning, Female, Protective Clothing

How to Cite:

Bolaji, J., Qiu, J., McQuerry, M. & Kwon, C., (2025) “A Comparative Anthropometric Analysis of Female Firefighters versus the General U.S. Female Population”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 81(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.18476