The Unconventional Use of Economic Theory

I have recently read the book “Freakonomics” written by Steven Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.  This book showed me for the first time an unconventional use of economic theory, much differing from that I was used to from following the syllabus of my AS levels. The book successfully makes economics interesting to non-economists and explores topics such as the role legalised abortion has played in reducing crime and the economics of drug dealing, such as the surprisingly low earnings of crack cocaine dealers. Such diverse, controversial and somewhat bizarre studies and comparisons have broadened my initial idea of what economics as a subject contributes to society.

Since reading the book a few months ago, I have become increasingly interested in studies and theories similar to that of Steven Levitt.  One article I have found that differs from that of “traditional economists” is called Why Do Tall People Make More Money? and is written by Steven E. Landsburg, an unconventional economist much similar to Levitt.  This particular article focuses on the relationship that exists between a person’s height and salary, and Landsburg attempts to provide an explanation for the peculiar relationship and via the work of three economists from the University of Pennsylvania.  

“So, what's the deal? Why do the tall tower over the short in more than just physical stature? Does height breed respect, so that tall people get showered with riches? Or does height breed self-esteem, so that tall people are more likely to assert themselves? In other words, do tall people succeed because of how others see them, or do tall people succeed because of how they see themselves? “

The work of the students seemed to suggest that it is self-esteem in adolescence, in this case caused by being a tall adolescent, that led to such people to be more likely to grow up as high paid workers. The logic behind this seems to make sense; tall teenagers think of themselves as leaders amongst their peers and resultantly end up with a leader position in later employment. However as with many economic theories, this is difficult to prove.  Persico, Postlewaite, and Silverman, the three economists from the University of Pennsylvania that are mentioned in the article seem to come as close as possible to achieving this without the use of a drastic and very long-winded experiment.