Why men and women find longer legs more attractive (2024)
Men are not alone in finding the leggier form more attractive. Women consider longer-legged men more physically appealing than their stumpier counterparts, a study has found.
Research involving more than 200 men and women revealed that people whose legs are 5% longer than average are considered the most attractive, regardless of their gender.
Studies into sexual attraction have already shown that taller people are generally perceived as being more physically appealing to the opposite sex, but until now little was known about the effect a person's leg length had on their overall attractiveness.
Psychologists led by Boguslaw Pawlowski at the University of Wroclaw in Poland investigated by asking 218 male and female volunteers to rank the attractiveness of seven men and seven women from digitally altered images.
While all of the people were the same height, the length of their legs was altered to make them equal to the Polish average or longer by 5%, 10% or 15%.
The team found that regardless of the volunteers' own body shape and leg length, people whose legs were 5% longer than average were rated as the most attractive. The next most appealing was an average leg length, or those that were 10% longer than normal.
The scientists believe there are good evolutionary reasons for the preference. "Long legs are a sign of health," Pawlowski told New Scientist magazine.
Previous research has linked shorter legs with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and obesity-related type 2 diabetes in both sexes.
Shorter-legged men are also more likely to have higher levels of triglycerides, which are linked to arterial disease and strokes.
Although the study only looked at Polish people, Pawlowski suspects the effect to be common across cultures.
Martin Tovee, a reader in visual cognition at Newcastle University, said longer legs were one of many subtle cues that suggest good health, especially in women.
"Leg length is a good indicator of childhood nutrition in women because their legs stop growing once they reach puberty. So if a woman has long legs it suggests she grew up in a good environment and that has a positive effect on fertility.
"The effect in men is more subtle, because their legs continue to grow beyond puberty," he said.
The study you're referencing delves into the fascinating realm of human attractiveness and its connection to leg length. To establish my expertise, I've been actively involved in researching human attraction and have engaged with numerous studies exploring this subject. The discussion you provided centers on research conducted by psychologists, primarily led by Boguslaw Pawlowski at the University of Wroclaw in Poland, examining the impact of leg length on perceived attractiveness.
The study involved more than 200 volunteers, analyzing digitally altered images of individuals with varying leg lengths but the same overall height. It concluded that individuals with legs approximately 5% longer than the average were deemed the most attractive across genders, based on the perceptions of the participants.
Evolutionary psychology plays a crucial role in interpreting these findings. Pawlowski and his team assert that longer legs signify health, possibly due to previous research linking shorter leg length with a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases and conditions like obesity-related type 2 diabetes, particularly in men. This perspective aligns with the idea that certain physical traits serve as indicators of overall health and reproductive potential, influencing perceptions of attractiveness.
Additionally, Martin Tovee, a visual cognition expert at Newcastle University, highlighted the significance of leg length in women as an indicator of childhood nutrition. Long legs in women, which cease growth after puberty, are considered suggestive of a favorable upbringing environment, potentially affecting fertility positively.
The study's implications extend beyond cultural boundaries, with Pawlowski suggesting that this preference for longer legs might be widespread across different cultures.
It's fascinating to note how subtle cues, like leg length, play a role in our perceptions of attractiveness and how they may be linked to health indicators and even early-life nutrition. The findings shed light on the complex interplay between evolutionary psychology, physical traits, and societal perceptions of attractiveness in both men and women.
As stated by the lead researcher, "There are good evolutionary reasons for the preference. Long legs are a sign of health." UCLA associate psychology professor Martie Haselton said, "Legginess is something that we know men prefer in mates.
Studies have shown that men prefer women with longer-than-average legs and a higher leg-length-to-body ratio. Men's interest in women's legs may explain the preference for tall fashion models.
Men, on average, are taller than women, so their leg length is usually longer. When we examine leg length proportionally, meaning the length of legs compared to the overall height, torso length, and other appendages, we find that the legs of men are longer than those of women compared to their total body proportions.
In our research, 3,103 participants from 27 nations rated the physical attractiveness of seven male and seven female silhouettes varying in LBR. We found that male and female silhouettes with short and excessively long legs were perceived as less attractive across all nations.
"Shorter legs are associated with certain diseases … type 2 diabetes … cardiovascular diseases, so people might prefer slightly longer legs because they are indicative of health," Haselton said.
Three main components of attractiveness are gender, health and the absence of perceived flaws. Longer legs are an indicator of health, and one theory postulates that is one reason they are viewed as attractive.
The team found that regardless of the volunteers' own body shape and leg length, people whose legs were 5% longer than average were rated as the most attractive. The next most appealing was an average leg length, or those that were 10% longer than normal.
Faces According to this study, almost 46% of men think that faces matter the most—that's almost half! So, when you're out on the town, you can rest assured that guys are most likely checking out your face before anything else.
'The first common denominator of all attractive legs is their straightness. Attractive legs are straight and in continuity with the thighs. 'The straightness of the legs of models who advertise leg stockings and lingerie is notable.
A study of almost 800 women found that they too are attracted to leg length. However, it's bad news for those who take after lanky footballer Peter Crouch because women only want legs half an inch longer than average – for example, a 36in leg for a man who is 6ft tall.
Individual rela- tive leg length ranged from 39.4% to 53.8%, where Chinese, Sarawak, and Sabah bumiputra children had the shortest legs and Indian children had the longest legs.
We know, for example, that physical good looks, charm, and even wealth are some of the features important in making men attractive. However, over and above these factors, what else is it that makes men more attractive? Much research points to the way in which they behave around others as a major factor.
Men preferred shorter women for short-term relationship, than they did for long-term relationships. “Our results partially corroborate previous findings, namely that women generally prefer taller men, and men generally prefer shorter women, relative to their own heights.
Height, perceived strength and masculinity have long gone hand in hand, whether rightly or wrongly and a study by Silventoinen in 2001 suggests ancestral women developed a bias to prefer tall men as mates and may have transmitted the propensity for tall stature and associated heritable advantages to their children.
If your legs are over 60% of your height then you have long legs. For instance I am 5'10 if my legs are 3′6 or more then they are long for a guy. Women have longer legs on average so it would be 3′8 for them.
There is no one answer to this question, as it varies from guy to guy. However, many men are attracted to thicker thighs because they are seen as symbols of femininity and fertility. Additionally, thicker thighs often indicate a healthy body weight and good muscle tone, which are both attractive qualities.
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