the shorter, the happier, the longer

7 Reasons You Should Date Shorter Guys

Hayley MacMillen

I know many an otherwise open-minded woman who swears that she would never date someone shorter than she is, and I used to count myself among them. I clock in at 5-foot-10, a good 6 inches taller than the average American woman, and had never considered dating a guy shorter than me until I ended up falling for one - and I’m happy I did. So much for that deal-breaker.

One 2012 study in the U.K. showed that in 92.5 percent of opposite-sex couples, the man was taller than the woman. According to the CDC, the average height difference between men and women is 5.5 inches (coincidentally - or maybe not - that’s about the same length as the average erect penis. Do with that what you will). And both men and women feel pressure to adhere to height norms: One 2008 study of college students found that about 50 percent of guys wanted their partners to be shorter than them, while 90 percent of women wanted their partners to be taller than them. I’m here to tell you that this requirement is overrated. Here’s why.

 

. Research suggests that short men do a larger share of the housework.

A 2014 working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research on men’s heights and relationship dynamics found that on average, short men (here defined as 5-foot-7 and below) did eight hours and 28 minutes of housework per week, or about 28 percent of the total. Tall men (6-foot-2 and above) completed about seven hours and 30 minutes a week, while men of average height did seven hours and 38 minutes. Yes, men of all statures are doing less housework than they should (how tall are the men who do 50 percent of it?), but short men are apparently less likely to leave their dirty dishes in the sink. Score.

Short men are least likely to divorce.

Finally, the paper showed that while divorce rates for tall and average-height men were comparable, they were 32 percent lower for short men. Maybe short men’s partners are enjoying sharing the housework, financial support, and willingness to flout stereotypes in favor of a strong relationship