By Amanda Bryan
Want to add a few centimetres to your stature instantly without the help of heels or a hat? Just picture yourself in a situation where you are in charge.
Researchers have found those in powerful positions actually consider themselves taller than they really are - by about an inch on average.
Feelings of power can increase perceptions of your own height say scientists.
This effect may have been at work in the aftermath of the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico when BP Chairman, Carl-Henric Svanberg controversially declared: "we care about the small people".
While this was defended by the company as a clumsy turn of phrase by a Swedish exec, the authors of Living Large study said the faux pas spurred them to investigate the "provocative possibility that the powerful literally misperceive their height relative to others".
"Our results suggest the beleaguered chief executive of BP may have inadvertently provided a window into the physical experience of power," the authors said.
A number of studies have already shown that tall people are often viewed as more powerful than their shorter peers and that taller people make more money and are generally found in higher status occupations.
This study sought to find out if the effect worked in reverse: whether the powerful overestimated their own height.
Professor Jack Goncalo of Cornell University and Michelle Duguid at Washington University conducted three experiments: one in which people judged their height relative to an object, another where they where they were asked to estimate their own height and a third where they assigned a height to their videogame avatar.
"Using different manipulations of power and measures of perceived height, we found that people literally perceived themselves as taller when they occupied a more powerful position," the researchers said.
In one of the experiments, participants (who averaged around 168cm) were asked to estimate their own height after taking part in a role-play. Those who were assigned a leadership role estimated their height to be about 170cm on average.
The effect worked in reverse too. Those who were assigned a role as the employee actually shrank a little in size - down to about 167 cm - in their own estimation. That means we have around three centimetres to play with depending solely on the direction of our thoughts.
Leading from above
Other older studies have shown shown the effect is not limited to self-image. Australian psychologist, Paul Wilson discovered way back in 1968 that people tended to subconsciously estimate others to be of greater height as their status rose. A when it comes to leaders, our expectations also seem to extend into the physical realm.
This may help explain why former Prime Minister John Howard is considered short, even though he reportedly is of average height at 176.5cm.
The authors of the Living Large study said their findings open the way for further study on whether controlling someone's physical positioning could be used as an inexpensive and non-intrusive way of empowering people in their own minds - and in the view of others.
For instance, working in the top floor of a building may help to raise a mild mannered manager's psychological sense of power.
How would you know if it worked? The physical elevation would translate into behaviour typically associated with powerful people such as action-orientation (being a doer), speaking out of turn (butting-in) and objectifying others (treating people like things), according to the authors.