Tall tales but true

Why doesn’t Nicolas Sarkozy like his wife wearing heels?

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16th June, 2012

We like attractive people. No surprise there. As well as seeing people as more attractive if they have more symmetrical features (hands and feet included), we associate height in particular with status and leadership. For example, political leaders tend to be taller than average. In fact, no more than a handful of American presidents have been shorter than average. Bill Clinton and George Bush snr are both six foot two (1.88m), and Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama share six foot one. Come election time, taller politicians get more votes than shorter rivals. Why is this? As is the trend right ...

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