Size does count... tall men earn more, study finds
February 25, 2005 Edition 1
Bonn: Most people say height, shape and hair colour play little part in the abilities and character traits of someone, but these aspects nevertheless play a deciding role in people's judgments of others.
They provide the first important impression and this is based on "nothing more than prejudice", says psychologist Reinhold Bergler of Bonn University.
The power of prejudice is so strong that mere body size can decide success or failure in a professional career, particularly in a man.
"Long ago body size was seen as equivalent to strength and this notion remains genetically programmed into us," says Guido Heineck of the Institute for Family Research in Vienna.
According to a study he has completed, every additional centimetre in height brings home 0.6% more pay every month.
"If one looks at two men with equivalent qualifications, but who differ by 10cm in height, the taller man will earn e1 800 more a year on average," Heineck says.
Tall people are seen as self-confident and ambitious.
They are able to assert themselves and show leadership qualities.
"One has more respect for taller people, one feels smaller in their presence," Heineck says.
This means that taller people applying for a job are at an advantageas smaller applicants are looked down upon.
With women height plays a subordinate role in their careers. But both sexes profit from being good-looking.
"The more attractive someone appears to others, the more positive their judgment of him or her," says Manfred Hassebrauck, a professor of psychology at the University of Wuppertal in Germany.
Good-looking people of either sex are regarded as more intelligent and more competent than others, he believes.
But there is a downside because they are also regarded as vain and lacking modesty.
Being attractive also has an effect on earnings. "There are studies that show that the more attractive someone is, the more they earn," Hassebrauck says.
Men in particular gain from this effect. "In professional life, looking good is more important than it is when choosing a partner," he says.
With women, the figure is decisive. "Slim women are judged more positively than fat women," Heineck says.
Studies in the US have shown that plump women are paid less on average than slim women because they are regarded as less intelligent, less disciplined and less motivated.
Juliane Degner, a psychologist at the University of Saarbruecken in Germany, has looked into prejudices about people who are overweight.
"Fat people are on the one hand seen as stupid, lazy, slow and frustrated, but on the other as humorous, companionable and open to contact with others," she says.
Other prejudices relate to hair colour.
Other than blonde women, red-haired men are the victims of negative prejudice, says Ronald Henss, who teaches psychology at the University of Saarland, Germany.
"They are not seen as intelligent, are thought to be more nervous, less sure of themselves and less manly."
The experts agree, however, that judgments based on prejudice don't do justice to the person concerned. - Sapa-dpa
