French study shows women wearing high heels win men's attention

Women in high heels are perceived as more attractive than their flat-shoe counterparts and, according to a French study, women who choose high heels also might be more likely to get a helping hand from men.

The study, published in Archives of Sexual Behaviour, was made up of four distinct experiments, each of which featured women in flat shoes, medium-heeled shoes (5cm) and high-heeled shoes (9cm). Other than their heel height, the shoes were basically black, professional and in fashion.

Two of the experiments measured how likely someone was to agree to complete a survey when a woman in business casual stopped them on the street.

The third experiment recorded how many people helped a researcher who pretended to accidentally drop her glove, and the fourth measured how quickly women were approached in a bar, with all things being equal except footwear.

In all cases, the highest heels prevailed, but only when men were involved.

The researchers did not try to pinpoint exactly why high heels made a woman more successful in getting attention from men.