Scientists have proven: the male habit that irritates women is real

Australian scientists have proven that men are twice as likely to "tune out" of a conversation when they are busy with other tasks. The results of a large-scale experiment have been published in the journal Psychological Research.

The researchers recreated a situation familiar to everyone in everyday life — when a person has to simultaneously search for information, complete tasks, and maintain a conversation. A total of 78 men and women took part in the experiment.

Every 20 seconds, participants were asked pre-recorded questions requiring detailed answers, for example: "Would you rather be 10 minutes late or arrive 20 minutes early?" The subjects were asked to respond as if they were having a live conversation with a real person.

The difference in results was striking. Women answered an average of nearly 25 out of 28 questions, while men answered only about 20. In other words, women missed about 12% of the questions, while men missed nearly 28% — more than twice as often.

Notably, the quality of the men's answers was in no way inferior to the women's. The problem lay elsewhere: men "tuned out of the conversation" significantly more often — they simply did not notice the question or did not respond to it, being absorbed in performing other tasks.

In the second phase of the study, independent observers confirmed this finding: men appeared less engaged in the conversation, made less effort to maintain the dialogue, and derived less enjoyment from it.

The authors of the study believe that men may subconsciously perceive conversation as a lower-priority task compared to other activities, or concentrate so deeply on their current task that speech directed at them literally passes them by.

According to the scientists, this effect may be behind the widespread everyday stereotype that women are better at multitasking. At the same time, the researchers emphasize that the difference primarily concerns the ability to maintain communication, rather than the performance of other tasks. The findings may be relevant not only for family life but also for professions where successful work depends on constant information exchange — in aviation, medicine, or emergency services.