How can I easily pre-determine what sort of armor a follower will prefer?

Spun off from this answer: My housecarls won't stay dressed!

Apparently, certain characters will just outright refuse to keep on any clothes that don't meet their particular preference. For some it might be Heavy Armor, for some it might be Light Armor, and I'm sure others prefer robes or plain clothes.

Is there a way (maybe a list I haven't found yet?) to determine who would like to wear what, before giving them any items?

Also, all the housecarls I've had so far seem to come standard with Steel Armor. Does this mean they all prefer Heavy Armor?

Solution 1:

The followers page at the UESP wiki lists what skills each follower has. You can see that all Housecarls are one handed warriors who specialise in heavy armor.

Solution 2:

If your smithing is high, you should be able to upgrade light and heavy armor bracers with roughly equivalent armor rating (Leather and Iron). These bracers will overwhelm the follower's default bracers. The follower would then choose the better bracers based on their skill modifier. See which bracers the follower likes.