Brachytic stem is a major trait in plant type of soybean and its yield potential may be higher under high population whencompared with normal stem. In the present investigation, 152 recombinant inbred line (RIL) families derived from the crossof Bogao (normal stem) and Nannong 94-156 (brachytic stem) were used to map genes and QTLs of three plant type traitsand to identify the effects of brachytic stem on agronomic traits such as yield. The primary results indicated that brachyticstem (sb) and determinate growth habit (dt1) were mapped on linkage groups B2 and L, three major QTLs related to plantheight were detected and mapped on linkage group L near dt1, another minor QTL was mapped near sb on linkage groupB2-1. Lines with brachytic stem had shorter plant height, lower biomass, yield, harvest index and pods per plant, andessentially no differences in days to maturity and 100-seed weight when compared with normal stem lines. It was obviousthat the effect of brachytic stem on yield was due to the decreased height, biomass and harvest index. In the present investigation, 152 recombinant in linered families (RIL) derived from the crossof Bogao (normal stem) and Nannong 94-156 (brachytic stem) were used to map genes and QTLs of three plant type traitsand to identify the effects of brachytic stem on agronomic traits such as yield. The primary results indicated that brachytics (sb) and determinate growth habit (dt1) were mapped on linkage groups B2 and L, three major QTLs related to plant height were detected and mapped on linkage group L near dt1, another minor QTL was mapped near sb on linkage group B2-1. Lines with brachytic stem had shorter plant height, lower biomass, yield, harvest index and pods per plant, andessentially no differences in days to maturity and 100-seed weight when compared with normal stem lines. It was obviousthat the effect of brachytic stem on yield was due to the decreased height, biomass and harvest index.