Recently, I made a throwaway account on reddit to ask a 6'6 160 lb guy if people are intimidated by him. Apparently so, or at least he thinks they are (it's near the bottom of the page). I knew the answer going in, but I asked anyway.
I've noticed this for ages now. It's like people judge size and power by height alone, then claim it's "instinct." Just thought it's bizarre. I've seen 220 lb 6'5 guys seem kind of skinny, let alone 6'6 and 160. Still, I'd bet that people would choose to fight a shorter 200+ lb powerlifter/grappler, over a random 160 lb tall guy, because they'd think the latter is "bigger."
I first took note of this due to living in a large Asian community, where many women love tall skinny South Korean actors. That's fine in itself, but they often talk about how these guys look strong and make them feel protected. Always baffled me. Lots of anime also portray tall skinny men as powerhouses. One could claim this is instinctive, but elephants/rhinos/hippos don't fear giraffes, do they? In the jungle, you actually need weight/power as well. While taller men are heavier on average, seeing the narrow-shouldered ones with skinny wrists still get treated like mastodons is bizarre.
Weakest guy I've ever known was 6'0 and 125 lbs, so perhaps that's why I never associated strength with stature alone. Of course, with the way society links power to tallness, I'm not surprised by people thinking height wins fights. Sad how so many consider themselves to be "educated," yet seem blind and ignorant when it comes to height. Hell, this isn't even something one needs to scrutinize. Shouldn't people just see it in the bone structure and muscle mass? Apparently not.
More on frame size and height here.
