Cheer Bows: A Short Discourse On Correlation and Causation

Before the tardy bell rang, I had a short conversation with a member of our school's dance team. I learned that a successful dance troupe has the following features:

1. Good moves - I believe the precise adjective used in this conversation was "sweet."
2. Large hair bows, consisting of either glitter or sequins.  The more, the better.
3. Pristine "poofs" - A term for a particularly difficult manner of doing one's hair that involves a great deal of hairspray.

The hair bows caught my attention.  I figured the "sweet" moves was an obvious skill for a dance team, and I don't have enough style to speak intelligently about the "poof."  Bows are a major part of women's sports and there is even a huge subculture of crafters who have made a business out of hair bows.  But do big bows necessarily make one a better dancer?

The dance team member I was talking to had two hair bows, one fastened to her head and another attached to her cheer bag.  I am no expert at hair accessories, but they seemed larger than is practical; both bows observed were about  6-7 inches tall and about 5 inches across.  The ribbon itself was about 3 inches wide and each iridescent sequin was placed with impressive geometric precision.

I asked, "Why are the bows so big?"

She answered, "Well, spirit, of course.  And all the best teams have them."

I ventured a bit further.  "Does the size actually cause you dance better, or are they just a staple of the best teams?"

She replied, "I don't know.  Both, maybe.  They're just cute!"

I laughed and asked,  "Both?  Now, that's something!  Perhaps big bow size means increased "cuteness," and cuteness increases spirit, which increases one's dancing skill, which increases a team's chances at success."

"Um...  Yes?"  

My keen sense of observation led me to believe the conversation needed to end, but I am convinced that there may actually be a causal relationship between bow size and team success.