Why do people believe that men and women are so different?

Question

First of all...pardon my spelling! I am a female science student. I see few differences between men and women(other than physical!!). I am unfamilliar with this 'emotionalism' and 'softness' men see when they think of a woman. I will tell you right now that I have horrible social skills, and prefer to conduct laboratory experiments. It really bothers me when people are surprised that I am not at all interested in the domestic life. I have absoluetly no interest in children or marriage. Growing up, I was considered a 'nerd'...you know awkward, intellectual and quiet. Here's what I think.....the average person, one without a university degree, usually fits into the social conventions placed upon males and females. I have also noticed that these people have difficulty with 'outside of the box' thinking. Another thing....you cannot dictate that 3 billion people are nurturing, weak, and emotional, and the other 3 billion are logical, assertive, and dominant. Feedback please!!!

Answer 1

Men are different all over the world. Western european culture, i.e UK, breed lazy, shaven headed, neolithic knuckle dragging, nihilistic arrogant, brutal flag-waving types. Central Europeans are more civilised in as much as they are allowed to carry knives on their belts, usually to cut sausage or cheese for lunch..Third world males are hopeless poets and dreamers for the most part, no sense of personal responsibility because Allah takes care of that. The Americas are populated mostly by males who think that everyone else lives on the edge of the world and that they should sail out to push them off. .. We as women have a slightly different outlook.... oops! did I say something..??!!

Answer 2

I think your assumptions on peoples assumptions are slightly off. In my experience the largest difference between men and women is how they deal with a tramatic experience. Men tend to think to themselves and take longer to discover why they are upset. They often separate from their normal activities and think to themselves. Women are more likely to talk to people bout what has happened and use friends for strength. No one way is weak or emotional. Being a lab teck you may find it interesting that when looking at the Y chromosone scientists were able to figure it out relatively quickly compared to the X chromosone, whih is still confusing them. The X chromosone is thoght to hold the majority of the emotinal receptors. In this way women are more able to understand their emotions, although they are hardly basket cases. Men need some help figuring out why they are angry. Also the agressive, emotional, and other types of personality nature has to do with the amount of testosterone in the body. Some women have more then others, some have less. Same with men.

Answer 3

I agree with you. The fact that you have a degree in science at all says a lot for your personality. If you were a standard "Math is hard, let's go shopping" kind of girl, you would probably be leading quite a different life :)

I have a BS in Biotechnology, and while the last place I would want to be is in a lab, I got used to dealing with women more your style...and it was great!

However, there are differences between men and women. You are in a minority - for good or bad, I can't say.

I think many feminine traits are learned, but most just "are".

Answer 4

Men and Women are different in so many ways.
Our bodies are different.
Our hormones are different.
We are emotionally different
We think different
We are even raised different.
Men have more upper body strength.
Women have more lower body strength.
It does not matter if you have a degree or not. Men and women are different. It's a gene thing.
There are things men can do that a women can not and there are things women can do that men can not. If men were to have kids, there would be zero population growth on this earth.
Women tolerate pain more than men.

Answer 5

Well, those physcial sides that you are familiar with create the difference in our emotional beings. Men tend to see things very black and white. Men seem to not feel guilt the way women do. Women will torture themselves over something that a man would view as nothing. It appears that men and women's brain produce different chemicals. At least I think so! Male and female thinking (I am female) is very similar - but women exert a much more cautious nature, which I believe is due to their inbred association with being weaker and thus more vulnerable to injury and prey.

Answer 6

Men and womens' brains, ms. science student, have different chemical makeups. There isn't a scientific explanation for everything but it does apply to some degree here. Again, the nurture vs. nature theory has a solid standing argument as well. The fun part about dating and getting to know people, as well as their friends and family, is learning about yourself, your preferences and who you find compatible. This is the fun part. Well, finding a compatible partner is the fun part!

Answer 7

Of course one can't dictate it, but for the majority of western women and men there are tendencies to be certain ways. ANd if you truly haven't seen a difference from being in a room full of women vs a room full of men, you are seriously deficient in observational skills.

It's one thing to want to be treated as equal and another thing entirely to claim that there is no gender difference. Read "You just don't understand" by D. Tannen, or anyhting at all by her.

Answer 8

There are physical and chemical differences in our brains. Men think in straight lines while women have more of a spider web of thought. (Part of what makes us good scientists.) Simple bio psychology will give you the answers to our psychological differences and biology the physical. We are very different, but I will agree with you that it is not as society leads us to believe. Those who expect you to be anything but who you are, are of no consequence to you. They have narrow minds and will never understand the real you. Be proud to be the woman that you are! Don't let anyone tell you different.

Answer 9

First of all, we don't pardon spelling here, least of all in people who are as you put it, above average and have a degree. We have spell check. And before you jump on that you did say "average people without a degree". I'm not surprised that you're not interested in children... I'm glad you won't be breeding.

Answer 10

Social institutions created by males to suppress women so they are thought of as only capable of doing their gender role. Two excellent examples are religion and family. Many things about marriage indicate that women are almost property to their husband (Woman taking man's last name, father giving her daughter to the hisband ceremony, etc.). Religion also helps inflict the thought of women as lesser. One commandment states that a man should not covet (sp?) thy neighbor's wife. Once woman internalize the gender roles that society teaches them, they follow the self-fufillment prophecy and end up doing the duties that they usually do.