[mountn man]

As a woman, I do not disagree with this finding. But because of this, women are far more likely to get where we want to go in much speedier, less gasoline intensive, fashion, because we can admit right away that we are lost and are not afraid to ask for directions.

And yet take a woman shopping and its a dozen stops and an afternoon affair to buy one thing.

For a man it's go to the store where item is at.
Get item.
Pay for item.
Leave.

[the OlLine Rebel]

BS. You obviously haven’t worked in car parts or hardware!

[Jamestown1630]

Someone upthread mentioned differences in the male and female being based in our hunter-gatherer past. I’ve always thought this was true about the female love of shopping.

The gathering women were basically shopping, finding new nuts, berries and other resources that could make the group happier and more comfortable; while the men were going out, finding the item, ‘paying’ for it, and going home.

-JT

[gleeaikin]

But as I pointed out in another comment, women as a survival mechanism have good memories about place and time of static objects like fruit, nuts, and roots. When they go shopping, they are always checking out where things are that they might want to go back for later. Either when they have more money, or the need arises, or when the things might go on sale (be ripe). It makes sense. Thus, it may be that in some aspects women are better planners.