Do you think this is true about short v tall men?

[Agogog]

I had a conversation with a male friend who is about 5ft 8. Very successful, by the way, both professionally and with a lovely family.

He said that tall men are at a key advantage:

1. More likely to be considered for leadership positions
2. Higher self-esteem
3. More successful on dating apps
4. Study shows that women would rather be with a tall man (over 6ft) who earns £30K less than shorter man

This really unsettled me. The reason it came up is because we were both discussing our sons. His is a year older and is having, finally, an adolescent growth spurt - and looks likely to be his height or taller.

My son is small, no spurt in sight. My husband is 5ft 8. I'm a few inches shorter. DH was a late developer, so i'm not worried yet. But who knows, he might not even be 5.8. I can't control that.

ANYWAY, I was upset last night. I kept thinking - I know my son will never be a giant. Is this really going to hold him up in life?

Also usually taller mens voices tend to be deeper and any female will tell you that deeper voices seem to be listened to more.

Personally, I think it is an advantage to be a tall man. I don't think it makes a difference in terms of career or work progression, but I think it does have an impact on their romantic lives.

I will freely admit that I find taller men much more attractive. It's not the end of the world if someone isn't tall but it does put me off if a man is short. People can judge me for that if they like, but it's the truth. I can't help what I'm attracted to.

My first H was 5ft 8, and my DH now is 6 ft 3.

I definitely prefer being with a tall man.

Comparing the two :

1st H earns 3 times as much as DH

1st H has nowhere near the confidence of DH

1st H very useless in dangerous situations. DH would win any fight.

It's worth mentioning also, that I have a son with 1st H. He is an adult and way taller than his Dad - about 6ft 1, I think. So there is no reason to thing that your son will be the same height as his dad. Also, even though DH is 6ft 3, his own father is about 5 ft 8. Go figure!

Most of the male world leaders rn are short. They seem to have done ok for themselves.

I think that if all other things are strictly equal between the two men, both equally nice people with humour, intelligence, decency of the same levels and equally facially good looking, then yes, the first 3 are true. The last, I'm not so sure, as high earnings can elevate a man's attractiveness. However, its not something to worry unduly about. Its just life. Substitute 'tall/short man' for 'pretty/plain woman' and it looks largely the same. And somehow plain women get by.

I'm not going to lie, I like tall men but then I'm 5' 9 so am quite tall myself.

I wouldn't date someone shorter than me but there are plenty of shorter women who are probably more than happy with a man who's 5' 7 or 8.

This is true in the same way that better looking women do better than less conventianally attractive women, thin vs fat, rich vs poor etc. There's nothing you can do and if you start looking at your son in this way, you'll give him a complex. He needs you to be positive for him xx

Interesting a man brought this up. Men do this as one up man ship. I think men innately compete with one another.

Statistically it's true. Of course that doesn't mean that every tall man scores higher on these factors than every short man.

Mmm i can see it's a factor that contributes to "attractiveness" and there is certainly a pretty privilege but I've known many highly successful men on the shorter side. It's just one of many many factors.

Nah, I dated a 6"2 rugby player in my teens. I'm only 5"2, was a friggin stretch (literally) trying to snog him. 5"6 DH is the perfect height for me.

5ft 8 isn’t that short though. If he was 5ft 4 I could understand the concern. Anyway if you’re confident and handsome your height is much less important. Ugly is a way bigger problem than short.

My exh is 6'6 and a low SE earner from what I can tell from CMS and how he doesn't have to pay maintenance. Let's just say his personality doesn't match how he presents himself

I actually hope our boys do not get anywhere near as tall - it is a nightmare to get clothes, shoes and can lead to health issues.

My best friend's husband is very successful and he is about 5'6

I'm a 5 foot 3 woman and always told I'm tiny. People are just weird at times op

My son is 25th centile for height too so I don't know what he'll be as an adult. I imagine taller than me and his dad.

I think for us 5'8" women, they do appear short. I'm constantly gently surprised at how petite some people are when I step out of my tall bubble. Growing up, my group of female friends, completely by chance were all about this height so it just seemed normal. I've never dated anyone under about 6 ft. ExP is 6'3". BIL is much shorter, married to my 5'9" sister. He's the archetypal small man, a bit self important.
He and my sister have been married nearly 50 years, very happy and he's an excellent organiser and cook.
Height is obviously not important but I have a soft spot for tall men.

When I look around me in my social and professional circles I see plenty of short men who have been successful in their careers and their dating lives. It's a non-issue for them and it doesn't even come close to the structural challenges that (for example) disabled people, LGBT people and non-white people face.

However as we can see throughout this very thread people can be incredibly weird and stupid about men's height, linking it to personality and all sorts of nonsense, and those people tend to speak their idiot thoughts out loud.

And there's also a type of person who can be very vocal about who they're attracted to and who they could never, ever be attracted to, as if it fucking matters to anyone else. Inevitably if they're a man they'll find a way to drop in how gross they find fat women into every conversation. And if they're a woman they'll bang on endlessly how short men give them the ick. (Evidence also throughout this thread!)

But those people should be avoided anyway!

Yes I've met Tom Holland's dad and he's even shorter but friendly and sociable and successful with a lovely wife and family. I'm sure that's influenced TH more than his own height.

I know plenty of perfectly successful, attractive shorter men! I've dated some. No issues for me as I'm 5'2. DH is 5'11 and I'm with him because I love him. I would if he was 5'4. I do like it when men are a bit taller than me but not too tall tbh. One of my male friends is 5'3. Never cares if I'm in heels. If there'd been a spark I'd have dated him.