The Napoleon complex, also known as Napoleon syndrome and short-man syndrome is a term to describe persons of short stature or dwarfism, typically men, who are perceived to have overly aggressive or domineering social behavior. There is the implication such behavior is to compensate for the subject's physical or social shortcomings or insecurities.[1] Both commonly and in psychology, the Napoleon complex is regarded as a derogatory social stereotype.[2] The Napoleon complex is named after Napoleon Bonaparte, the first emperor of the French, who was estimated to have been 5 feet 2 inches tall (in pre–metric system French measures), which equals around 1.57 metres, imperial measure.[3] Though Napoleon was close to average height for his era, British cartoonistJames Gillray nonetheless popularized the myth of Napoleon being short.
Research on whether short persons display higher levels of aggression or domineering behavior has produced mixed results.
Etymology
1815 French cartoon depicting the Duke of Wellington ordering Napoleon into exile
The Napoleon complex is named after French military officer and emperor Napoleon. Cultural depictions of Napoleon often depict him as compensating for his supposedly short height by seeking power and glory via aggressive military endeavors. This view was fostered in large part by British political cartoonists, who repeatedly depicted Napoleon as short to mock both him and his expansionist ambitions;[4] He is estimated to have been 1.67 metres tall (5 feet 2 inches in pre–metric system French measures or just under 5 feet 6 inches in imperial measure).[3] This was the period's average adult male height, depending on the source chosen.[5][6] Other historians assert that he was 5feet 7inches (1.70 metres) because he was measured on Saint Helena 28 years after the French adopted the metric system.[7]
Other names for the purported condition include Napoleonic complex, Napoleon syndrome and short man syndrome.[8][9][10][7]
Research
Affirmative
Abraham Buunk, a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, found evidence of the Napoleon complex. Researchers at the university found that men who were 1.63 metres (5ft 4in) were 50% more likely to show signs of jealousy than men who were 1.98 metres (6ft 6in).[8]
In 2018, evolutionary psychologistMark van Vugt and his team at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam found evidence for the Napoleon complex in human males. Men of short stature behaved more (indirectly) aggressively in interactions with taller men when playing competitive games under laboratory conditions. Their evolutionary psychology hypothesis argues that in competitive situations when males, human or nonhuman, receive cues that they are physically outcompeted, the Napoleon complex psychology kicks in: physically weaker males should adopt alternative behavioral strategies to level the playing field, including showing indirect aggression and coalition building.[11]
Research on personality traits suggests an association between height and antagonistic behavior in men who are dissatisfied with their short height rather than objective shortness being a determining factor. Bleeker et al. (2022) examined relationships between height and the Dark Triad—including Narcissism, Machiavellianism, and Psychopathy—and reported antagonistic traits were more strongly associated with dissatisfaction about one’s height than with objective height.[12] These findings are consistent with broader research in Social psychology indicating that perceived social status, rather than physical characteristics alone, is associated with variation in antagonistic and competitive behavior.[13]
Negative
In 2007, a study by the University of Central Lancashire concluded that the Napoleon complex is a myth. The study discovered that short men were less likely to lose their temper than men of average height. The experiment involved subjects dueling each other with sticks, with one subject deliberately rapping the other's knuckles. Heart monitors revealed that the taller men were more likely to lose their tempers and hit back. University of Central Lancashire lecturer Mike Eslea commented that "when people see a short man being aggressive, they are likely to think it is due to his size, simply because that attribute is obvious and grabs their attention".[10]
The Wessex Growth Study was a community-based longitudinal study conducted in the UK that monitored the psychological development of children from school entry to adulthood. The study was controlled for potential effects of gender and socioeconomic status, and found that "no significant differences in personality functioning or aspects of daily living were found which could be attributable to height";[14] these traits included generalizations associated with the Napoleon complex, such as risk-taking behaviours.[15]
↑Sandberg, David E.; Linda D. Voss (September 2002). "The psychosocial consequences of short stature: a review of the evidence". Best Practice & Research Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 16 (3): 449–63. doi:10.1053/beem.2002.0211. PMID12464228.
↑Knapen, J. E., Blaker, N. M., Van Vugt, M. (2018). "The Napoleon Complex: When Shorter Men Take More". Psychological Science, 0956797618772822. doi:10.1177/0956797618772822
↑Blaker, N. M.; Knapen, J.; Van Vugt, M. (2022). "The Napoleon complex, revisited: Height, dark personality traits, and antagonism". Personality and Individual Differences. 187: 111–130. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2021.111130.
↑Anderson, C.; Hildreth, J. A. D.; Howland, L. (2015). "Is the desire for status a fundamental human motive? A review of the empirical literature". Psychological Bulletin. 141 (3): 574–601. doi:10.1037/a0038781.
↑Lipman, Terri H.; Linda D. Voss (May–June 2005). "Personality Functioning: The Influence of Stature". MCN: The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing. 30 (3): 218. doi:10.1097/00005721-200505000-00019.
Blakemore, Erin. "Was Napoleon even short? Inside the history of discrimination against short men: He was a French dictator—the original short king. Napoleon's supposedly short stature made him the mockery of Europe and inspired a stigma that persists today." National Geographic Nov 22, 2023 online
Hopper, Tristin. "Why people think Napoleon was really short (even though he wasn't): A short-tempered, child-sized Napoleon soon became the accepted standard for caricatures of the Frenchman" National Post (July 13, 2023) online
Just, Winfried, and Molly R. Morris. "The Napoleon complex—Why smaller males pick fights" Evolutionary ecology, Vol. 17, No. 5–6 (Sept. 2003), pp.509–522.
McIlvenna, Una. "Was Napoleon Short? Origins of the ‘Napoleon Complex’: A prominent cartoonist's mocking depiction of the French emperor managed to stick through the centuries" History Nov 13, 2019 online
van Ginneken, J. "Height & Posture" in The Profile of Political Leaders ( Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2016) pp 19–37. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-29476-6_2
