If your friend told you that she dumped a dude because he had a weird nose, you just might judge her. (Or assume he's rotten in the sack and she's sparing his rep.)
If that same friend complained that the man was simply too short, science would say – yeah, well join the party.
A recent study by Rice University and the University of North Texas sought to determine the role of height in heterosexual relationships. Let’s just say that we ladies are more than a bit hypocritical in this area.
Before you get all statistics 101 on us (J*sus, was that a drag!) know that these researchers conducted this study in two parts to cover their tracks. Both yielded similar results. First, a heap of data (455 men and 470 women) was compiled from Yahoo’s personal dating ads. Of this bunch, 13.5% of men said they’d prefer a shorter gal pal. A whopping 48.9% of women, on the other hand, admitted that they need a taller partner.
Wow! Aren’t men supposed to be the more shallow ones? Aren't we supposed to be all, "he's a bit lumpy, but has a sparking personality?!"
Anyway. The second part of this study recruited volunteers from the university. From this batch, 37% of men confessed that they require a shorter partner whereas 55% of women ache for a giant in their lives. Pretty close correlation. So, yeah, this is reality. George Yancey, the study’s lead author, had this to say:
“The masculine ability to offer physical protection is clearly connected to the gender stereotype of men as protectors … in a society that encourages men to be dominant and women to be submissive, having the image of tall men hovering over short women reinforces this value.”
Barf. Didn’t our mothers go through the ‘70s to end this kind of crap? Triple-dog-dare ya to date a short guy.
Image: http://www.myliftkits.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/tumblr_mb90umr4yV1r...
