It’s the question women have been asking for decades - what goes on in the male mind? While physical differences between the sexes are obvious, we’re often left wondering about the psychological gap and what causes our male counterparts to interpret and react to the world in such a different way. Finally, a study by the City University of New York can offer more information about how and why men and women seem to see the world so differently.
That’s because researchers found that each gender literally sees the world in another way. "As with other senses, such as hearing… there are marked sex differences in vision between men and women," lead researcher Israel Abramov said in a statement. His study found that guys’ eyes are more sensitive to moving objects and small details, while women tend to be more perceptive to colour change.
"We suggest that… testosterone plays a major role, somehow leading to different connectivity between males and females," Abramov told reporters. Previous research has also shown that men fixate on the mouth of a person speaking, while women shift their gaze between the speakers eyes and body, taking a comprehensive picture in. Women are also more likely to be distracted by other people, they found.
While this research is just one example of a number of studies focusing on the science behind gender differences, and requires more evidence, it gives some intriguing insight into the ‘wiring’ of men and women and might go some way to explaining why we interpret and react to the world so differently.
Words by Sophie Miura
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