Men And Women Really Do See Things Differently - This Is How

Men and women are different in many ways - not only physically, but also mentally, which many different behavioural patterns show.
You have probably all had fights with your significant other where you just couldn't understand the reasons for your parter's actions!
Now, British scientists have conducted a study which shows that men and women really see things differently.

The Experiment

The team from the Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) was studying the different ways that men and women process visual information.
They tested visitors of the London Science Museum, and equipped them with an eye-tracking device.
The subjects were then sat in front of a monitor which displayed video clips of different actors (4 male, 4 female) that were sometimes looking directly at the camera, sometimes looking down.
While the device was tracking all their eye movements, the participants looked at the face, and it was monitored how much eye contact they were seeking or avoiding.

Eye tracking results

The Results

The results of the study showed that women were looking more at different parts of the face, while men were more focused on the eyes only.
Generally, they paid more attention to the left half of the face, especially women when looking at female actors.
Women also make larger saccades and shorter fixations, compared to men.
The results were so clear that the researchers could even predict the gender of the subject with 80% accuracy, only by looking at the viewing pattern.

"This study is the first demonstration of a clear gender difference in how men and women look at faces. We are able to establish the gender of the participant based on how they scan the actors' face"

-Dr. Antoine Coutrot, QMUL School of Biological & Chemical Sciences

Women's gazes are more scattered around the face

In previous studies, it had already been shown that women's gazes are more scattered than men's. They explore the body more with their gaze, actively looking for nonverbal signals.
The left-side-bias might be linked to the dominance of our right side of the brain in face processing.

"“There are numerous claims in popular culture that women and men look at things differently – this is the first demonstration, using eye tracking, to support this claim that they take in visual information in different ways.”"

-Isabelle Mareschal, QMUL School of Biological & Chemical Sciences

Statistics about the gaze: Males and Females viewing Male and Female Actors

Conclusion

While many have studied the general differences between men and women before, this was the first study of its kind that has shown how men and women process visual information when looking at faces.
The researchers suggest that although only face processing has been tested, the same patterns will likely apply to other daily activities like watching a movie or driving.
So men and women really do view things in a different way!
The results of the study could be used to improve the diagnosis and understanding of disorders like autism, schizophrenia, or ADHD.

Accuracy of predictions

Apart from this study, previous research had already shown that men are better at detecting quick movements, while women can distinguish colors more precisely.
This has an evolutionary background:
Men were focused on hunting and had to have extremely fast hand-eye-coordination skills.
Women on the other hand were the gatherers, and had to be experts in determining whether a fruit was edible or not - which is why even the slightest differences in color mattered to them.

Images: 1, 2, 3, 4, Sources: 1, 2, 3

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