Study “proves” women wearing heels are more attractive
03/01/2013
In a study published at the end of 2012, researchers at the University of Portsmouth concluded that high-heeled shoes help a woman look attractive because of the effect they have on the way her whole body moves.
Research involved asking observers (men and women) to gauge the attractiveness of a range of women from their walk. The women were filmed wearing shoes with a six-centimetre heel and, at different times, flat shoes. The technology used in the study meant the observers watched only a pattern of lights.
Ten women featured in the study; all ten were judged to look more attractive and more feminine when wearing heels. In a second part of the study, observers watching the pattern of lights were asked to guess if the wearer of the shoes was a man or a woman. Women wearing flat shoes were twice as likely to be mistaken for a man.
The team from the University of Portsmouth concluded that women wearing heels were more likely to attract admiring glances because of the way their hips, shoulders, legs, knees and feet move as a result of wearing the shoes.
Researchers found that, on average, the women walked more quickly when wearing heels, increasing the number of strides per minute from 106 to 110 steps. However, their stride shortened with high-heeled shoes on their feet, 1.24 metres in length to 1.2 metres.
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