Shit Men Say Online: The Science Behind "Transvestigation" & Why Men Panic Over Tall Women

Welcome to this week's blog post of our series Shit Men Say Online, where we excavate the internet’s most confidently incorrect male commentary, break down the psychological insecurities driving it, and teach you how to respond with petty, informed precision.

If you've been following along, you know we're using this space to build your ultimate database of actual data. The next time a man pipes up on the timeline demanding a "source" because a woman or feminine-presenting person shared their lived experiences, you’ll be prepared with the exact proof required to either piss them off or shut them up.

Today, we are looking at a post from this insecure loser:

"As a lady, ur shoe size should stop at 39. Any size above 40 means you're a man"

Men out here declaring that a European shoe size 40 (literally a US Women's 9) revokes your biological womanhood. Let's look at the actual psychology behind why men post things like this, and how to shut it down.

No One Is Louder Than a Man Insecure About His Height

We already knew this, but here's the data.

When guys get obsessed with ridiculous physical metrics like foot size, height, or shoulder width, they try to call it "biology" or "preferences." But if you look at the actual psychology, it’s really just a pretty desperate coping mechanism:

"Transvestigation" and Pseudo-Scientific Phenotyping

Research analyzing online gender policing identifies "transvestigation" as a socio-behavioral phenomenon where internet users obsessively scrutinize body parts—like shoe size, jawlines, height, or brow ridges—to claim a person is secretly transgender (Webster, 2024). Commenters invent arbitrary biological thresholds (like declaring shoe size 40 a male-only trait) to enforce a rigid gender binary and penalize women whose bodies don't fit an submissive, hyper-diminutive ideal (Webster, 2024).

The Threat of the Tall Woman (and the "Male-Taller Norm")

Sociology highlights the pervasive "Male-Taller Norm" which is the patriarchal expectation that in heterosexual dynamics, the man must always be physically larger and taller than the woman. When a woman is tall or has larger proportions, it directly threatens men who suffer from severe height and physical insecurity. To resolve the cognitive dissonance of a woman exceeding his preferred physical scale, he engages in phenotypic gender policing: attempting to strip her of her womanhood entirely so his ego doesn't have to admit she's simply bigger than him.

Height and Penis Size Insecurity (Fragile Status Maintenance)

Under Precarious Manhood Theory, manhood is culturally treated as a fragile status that must be constantly proven and defended (Vandello & Bosson, 2013). Research shows that physical insecurities, specifically around height and penis size, are deeply tied to fears of physical inadequacy and social subordination (Veale et al., 2015; Lever et al., 2006). When insecure men feel threatened by their own perceived physical shortcomings, they deploy Social Dominance Orientation tactics (Pratto et al., 1994). If a man cannot make himself taller or compensate for his own anxieties, he projects that insecurity outward by trying to "shrink" women or disqualify them from womanhood altogether.

How To Shut A Misogynist Down

When men start crying on your timeline about how a shoe size turns a woman into "a man," don't waste your energy trying to teach them basic human biology or bell-curve distribution. Misogynists don't care. Hit them right where it hurts: their fragile egos.

When crafting an online response to these types of men, it is important to use simple, yet effective language. While name-calling is fun and easy, you don't want to be penalized by the social media overlords for bullying or harassment.

Dismantling the "Authority"

Instead of getting defensive, hit them with a comeback that exposes their profound lack of emotional security. We have sifted through the data for you, a simple:

"That’s a lot of words just to tell the world you’re insecure about your height."

Or if you want to be especially condescending and target their fragile "alpha" scores:

"Imagine having an ego so delicate that women’s feet threatens your masculinity. Normal people would be embarrassed to admit a pair of shoes intimidates them this much."

If you want, you can provide the name of the research papers (all references are listed below), but it's not necessary; the onus is on men if they want to be educated.

Men and Their Constant Need for Validation

Instead of arguing with these guys about basic anatomy, just call out how embarrassing their own logic is. A guy stating his arbitrary "womanhood rules" unprompted always acts as if his rigid insecurity is a prize women are actively competing for.

In reality, he's the one begging for attention. His comment is just a sad attempt to play the grand arbiter of gender over a screen, demanding other people adhere to his imaginary rulebook because his own height or physical confidence is hanging by a thread. Since he's clearly the one craving validation from the algorithm, flip the script and ask him why he thinks his deep seated fear of women's footwear is relevant to anyone but his therapist.

Over to You...

We could hand these guys a peer-reviewed dissertation on their own insecurities and they’d still blame feminism. If we can't change their minds, we can at least disrupt their peace.

So how do you handle these entitled losers when the algorithm insults you with their presence? Drop your favourite ways to piss off men online in the comments. Let us build the ultimate cheat sheet.

If you want the next edition of Shit Men Say Online dropped directly into your inbox instead of hunting for it on your timeline, make sure you sign up for the newsletter.

P.S. If internet warfare is not enough and you want to piss men off in real life, we have plenty of audacious feminist and political t-shirts over in The Shop. Just saying.

References

• Lever, J., Frederick, D. A., & Peplau, L. A. (2006). Does size matter? Men's and women's perceptions of penis size across the lifespan. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 7(3), 129–143.

• Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., Stallworth, L. M., & Malle, B. F. (1994). Social dominance orientation: A personality variable predicting social and political attitudes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(4), 741–763.

• Vandello, J. A., & Bosson, J. K. (2013). Hard-won and easily lost: A review and synthesis of theory and research on precarious manhood. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 14(2), 101–113.

• Veale, D., Miles, S., Read, R., Troglia, A., Carmona, L., Muir, G., & Rahimi-Khashaki, A. (2015). Am I normal? A systematic review and construction of nomograms for flaccid and erect penis length and circumference in up to 15,521 men. BJU International, 115(6), 978–986.

• Webster, L. (2024). “We Are Detective”: Transvestigations, conspiracy and inauthenticity in ‘gender critical’ social media discourses. ELAD-SILDA, 10.