From the "no shit, Sherlock dept": men gossip more than women

[CatWoman]

Haven't you heard? Guys gossip too
By Gail Rosenblum

We're even-steven in the chatter department — and when it comes to down 'n' dirty dishing
Men, someone needs to tell you this, so it might as well be me.

You can deny it. You can call it "shop talk," "locker-room banter," "keeping in touch" or "networking." We heard last week about a study confirming that you talk as much as women, but here's a little known fact: You gossip just as much as women do, too.

This juicy tidbit comes courtesy of the Social Issues Research Centre (SIRC), a nonprofit think tank in England, which recently interviewed 1,000 cellphone users about how they use their phones for gossip and how gossip affects their lives. Many male participants initially denied that they gossip, according to the study, while nearly all of the females readily admitted to it. But come closer and listen to this: The study found that 33 percent of men indulge in gossip every day or almost every day, compared with 26 percent of women.

The study quoted a definition of gossip as "chatty talk among friends," and "the process of informally communicating value-laden information about members of a social setting."

Other findings essential to pass on to your 100 closest friends:

• Men are more likely to gossip with work colleagues, love partners and female friends; women prefer to dish primarily with female friends and relatives.

• Men gossip about work, politics or other highbrow topics less than 5 percent of the time, unless women are present. Then the proportion of male conversation devoted to sounding impressive increases to 15 or 20 percent.

• Men spend much more time than women talking about themselves.

Other studies, including those at the University of Virginia, Northeastern University in Boston and the University of Wisconsin, confirm that gossip is universal and gender-neutral.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/living/2003778067_mengossip090.html

[davsand]

1. I was a bar tender for a few years in a Moose Lodge.

In case nobody realizes, that really IS a men's club rather than a middle class country club. Anyhow, that afternoons shift was the happy hour gang and it was all men. I never thoght too much about it--I'd come in and turn on ESPN and start pouring beers. Anyhow, by about the second week, I began to realize just how MUCH gossip was flying in that bar--except men are way more sly about it.

"Yeah, we went to the restaurant the other night and he was in there with his girlfriend." The "he" in that sentence was a married guy who was always and forever the subject of discussion because of his obnoxious wife and kids. This was HUGE news to hear that he was tricking on the side, and not completely accepeted as proper.

"I hear tell _____ is selling that business of his. I also hear tell there's a few guys wanting to discuss it with him." _____ was forever in money trouble and rumored to have a close personal relationship with loansharks and unsavory types. This guy was the first to bet on ANYTHING.


Those kinds of lines were always delivered totally deadpan with some kind of knowing nod at the end. They were also met with knowing smiles, or nods and then a drink of beer. ALWAYS.


I was never treated with anything less than respect by these guys, and if anyone ever DID get out of line they were smacked down in a hurry by the rest of the gang.

Men's social lives are a real trip, and truth be told, I grew to love the company ofmen while doing that job.



Laura

[idgiehkt]

2. lol

Yep.

:rofl:

[NC_Nurse]

3. "Men spend much more time than women talking about themselves"

Who didn't know that one? :shrug:

[BlueIris]

4. Raises hand.

I thought all men talked about was hair care and Peebo Bryson.

[havocmom]

5. Weeks of watching some guys 'working' on a project in a store I worked at

made me understand how come men make more than women: With all the talking, it takes them three times as long to get something done.

Yeah, flame me, I don't care. It's just more yapping to prove my point ;)

[NewJeffCT]

6. Wasn't there a study that conflicted some of this not that long ago?

and, I know there was a study that came out early this year - or late last year - that showed women talking almost 3 times as much as men. It was greeted on DU by the typical "and next - water is wet" type of stuff.

[realisticphish]

7. There will always be

a study that proves anything. They may be BAD studies (though I have absolutely nothing against this one), but there will always be a study.

That said, I have a problem their definition of "gossip" is. How, precisely, does one gossip about POLITICS? "OMYGOD did you see what Barack was wearing???" The word gossip has connatations that I don't think this study uses correctly. Certainly I think men chat more. I would accept "chat" better than "gossip." They define gossip as, more or less, chatting. So why not say chatting?

Nitpicky, I know, but I've seen studies ruined because of very simple word choices.

[Kat45]

9. I agree with you about the word "gossip" but

the study was done in England and I'm wondering if the word has a slightly different nuance or meaning there.

[realisticphish]

10. hmm, good point

I have no idea. And being in England, it may be entirely different here, though I would think that a modern western culture is a modern western culture, in most respects.

I'm curious to see a similar study in the US, to see if it gets similar results.

[Kat45]

13. I just looked up the word in my Oxford English Dictionary:

Definition: 1 a. unconstrained talk or writing, esp. about persons or social incidents, b. idle talk.

I think that definition covers the way they're using the word, as well as the way we use the word here.

[realisticphish]

14. i don't quibble with the definition, per se

it's just that in my experience, "gossip" has a certain connotation that is not necessarily considered in the study. Meh, a minor detail.

[idgiehkt]

12. I think it's called "gathering intelligence"

when men do it.

[Redstone]

8. Not much of a surprise there. What a weenie generation have we bcome!

Meaning, of course, the under-40 generations. Most of the old farts of my age group still just want to have a cell phone that lets us make phone calls, after all.

Redstone

[Elidor]

11. And who is sharing this little bit of gossip with us? Women!

You and the columnist. Fie! :P

[CatWoman]

15. *grr*

:)