Chinese Online Class - Women don't talk more than men: study

WORLD / Health

Women don't talk more than men: study

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-07-06 04:44

Refuting the popular stereotype that females talk more than men,
researchers at The University of Texas have found women and men both use
an average of 16,000 words each day.

The psychology researchers published their findings in "Are women really
more talkative than men" in the July 6 issue of Science.

For more than a decade, researchers have claimed that women use far more
words each day than men. One set of numbers that is commonly tossed
around is that women use 20,000 words per day compared to only 7,000 for
men.

"These findings have been reported widely by national media and have
entered the cultural mainstream," James W. Pennebaker, co- author of the
study, said.

"Although many people believe the stereotypes of females as talkative and
males as reticent, there is no large-scale study that systematically has
recorded the natural conversations of large groups of people for extended
period of time."

For eight years, the psychology researchers have developed a method for
recording natural language using the electronically activated recorder
(EAR). The unobtrusive digital voice recorder tracks people's
interactions, including their conversations.

The researchers analyzed the transcripts of almost 400 university
students in the United States and Mexico whose daily interactions were
recorded between 1998 and 2004.

The research participants could not control the EAR, which automatically
records for 30 seconds every 12.5 minutes, and did not know when the
device was on.

The score is women with 16,215 words each day and men 15,669. The
difference by 546 words is "not statistically significant," the authors
conclude.

Top World News 

� Pakistani militants snub surrender call

� UK house used as bomb factory

� Mosque leader foresees end of siege

� Al-Qaida deputy leader seen in new video

� Cleric: Cryptic threat preceded attacks

Today's Top News 

� China stocks plunge as investor faith remains low

� Dead official expelled from party

� Karaoke bar blast kills 25 in Liaoning

� UK house used as bomb factory

� Ban slapped on polluting cities, zones

Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours

Learn Chinese, Free Chinese Lesson, Chinese Course, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet