What Your Shoes Say About You
This study is in no way shocking. University of Kansas researchers say that people can accurately judge 90 percent of a stranger's personality by looking at their shoes.
"Shoes convey a thin but useful slice of information about their wearers," the authors wrote in the new study published in the Journal of Research in Personality. "Shoes serve a practical purpose, and also serve as nonverbal cues with symbolic messages. People tend to pay attention to the shoes they and others wear."
Personality traits people could figure out include a person's general age, their gender, income, political affiliation, and other personality traits, including someone's emotional stability.
Flashy footwear was worn by extroverts. Practical shoes were worn by more agreeable people. And my favorite of all: ankle boots correlated with aggressive personalities.
Most surprising to me:
There was even a political calculation in the mix with more liberal types wearing "shabbier and less expensive" shoes.
So, what do your shoes say about you?
Footwear image via Shutterstock.
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Comments:
Aug '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Well, my right shoe says my bicycle chain is greasy.
Jan '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Mollie Hemingway, Ed.
So, what do your shoes say about you?
They reveal whatever Wal-Mart had on sale.
Dec '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Mollie Hemingway, Ed.
.· · 7 minutes ago
This would put me somewhat to the left of Bill Ayers.
I guess it does not always work.
In The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, Tom Wolfe descibed how important shoes were to the west coast psychodelic culture
May '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Perfectly timed.
May '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
My shoes were made by an 8 year old kid in Malaysia. What does that say about me?
Aug '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Those "shoes" you have pictured above? They say "I am a poser."
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
It's not my shoes that say things about me. It's my socks.
My lack of them, most days.
Jul '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Shucks, I wear Rockports. They are comfortable, certainly not inexpensive, durable, and available in all styles from rugged walking shoes (my daily wear) to dressy and stylish, which I will wear to the Chancellor's party this afternoon. Or, not.
A pinstripe, Florsheim clad colleague of mine, on his first trip here (we had worked together at Johns Hopkins way back when) wondered why everyone in Colorado wore 'tennis shoes'. I had to explain to him that usually people wore sturdy running or walking shoes, not tennies. Wingtips are not really practical for walkers.
Dec '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Rob Long: It's not my shoes that say things about me. It's my socks.
My lack of them, most days. · 0 minutes ago
You're so poor you cannot afford socks. At least you are not so poor you cannot afford underwear like Lindsay Lohan.
Apr '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Those shoes you have pictured enable you to outrun death itself, apparently.
May '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
I wear Sperry boat shoes, no socks. I'm certain that says something rather unflattering about me, but what can I do? They're so comfortable when I'm out on my yacht.
Haha.
Dec '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Mollie, come clean. You are a shill for the shoe industry. Are you also a denier of man made Global Foot Warming? How does it feel to be the Imelda Marcos of the conservative movement? :-)
Sep '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Well up until a few years ago I wore nothing but cowboy boots and then my wife told me that if I EVER showed up in cowboy boots again then our love life was over. So now I wear Alan Edmonds wing-tips in black or tan and I even have a pair - called The Bel Air - that are white and tan.
And socks.
Dec '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Mine say I'm in compliance with the Safety Program Manual at work...and that I have an aversion to polish.
Aug '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Where do my beloved $2 lime green flip-flops place me?
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Mr. Bildo: I wear Sperry boat shoes, no socks. I'm certain that says something rather unflattering about me, but what can I do? They're so comfortable when I'm out on my yacht.
Haha. · 17 minutes ago
I'm wearing Sperry boat shoes right now, no socks. But I don't have a yacht, so I guess I'm a poseur.
Dec '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Somewhere nobody can see you, I hope.
May '10
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Women with shoe closets must have very complicated personalities.
Aug '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
Women without shoe closets have complicated personalities as well.
Apr '11
Re: What Your Shoes Say About You
My shoes say two things about me:
1. Comfort is the priority in all situations.
2. I hate shoes.