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FRIDAY, Aug. 23 (HealthDayNews) -- Tall men and short women appear to be the height of desire for those looking for a mate.
A new British study found that
taller-than-average men and shorter-than-average women are more successful in attracting mates and having children.
Those preferences probably developed during human evolution, says study author Daniel Nettle, a lecturer in the departments of biological sciences and psychology at Open University in Milton Keynes, England.
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And, he adds, that probably explains why most men are taller than women.
"There may have been a time in the distant past where, in survival terms, it was advantageous for men to be big, and that would fit in with the kind of physical activities (such as hunting) they were doing," Nettle says.
"And it was advantageous for women to be small, which had to do with saving energy that would otherwise be expended in growing tall and using that (energy) instead on having offspring," he says.
Of course, human society and living conditions have changed, but those preferences seem stuck in our brains and still influence mate selection, Nettle says.
"So, even though the survival context has changed, this evolutionary process goes on because it's become wired into the psyche of the two sexes when they choose a partner."
His study examined the marital and parental status of 10,000 men and women born in Britain during one week in March 1958. They are part of Britain's National Child Development Study. As of the year 2000, he found, the taller men and shorter women in that group were more likely to be married or have children.
The study found that a man of average height (5 feet 8 inches) was less likely to have children than a man who is 6 feet 1 inch. Women between 4 feet 9 inches and 5 feet 1 inch were more likely to be married and have children than women with an average height of 5 feet 3 inches or taller.
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