Posted on 07/13/2011 9:43:33 AM PDT by freespirited
If you've ever spent time telling a guy a story or asking him a question, only to get a blank stare in response, then you know that there's definitely truth to this claim that guys weren't designed to hear us speak. I had a similar experience at brunch this weekend when I was going on and on to a male friend about something I can't even remember anymore. When I got to the end of my rant and finally asked him if he agreed with me on the topic at hand, his answer was, "sorry, I really wasn't listening to a word you said."
Even though I was incredibly frustrated with him, he did bring up a good point, asking, "would you rather I lie and say I heard you?" This little exchange, as insignificant as it was, did make me wonder exactly what it is that makes it so easy for men to tune us out.
As it turns out, a study published in the journal NeuroImage sought to answer the very same question. Researchers found that there are major differences in the way male and female brains process voice sounds. Different brain regions are activated in men, depending on whether they're hearing a male or female voice.
Apparently, the vibration and number of sound waves in our voice makes it harder for men to decipher what we're saying. When it comes to processing a woman's voice, they use the more complex auditory part of the brain that processes music, not human voices. But the guys in the study could easily hear and understand other men’s voices as speech because that uses a simpler brain mechanism at the back of the brain.
So, next time you want to get angry and yell at a guy for "not listening," cut him a little slack – his brain just wasn't made to hear you. My suggestion would be to speak slowly and get to your point fast.
And I use a female voice setting on my GPS. Female voices are easier to pick out and understand under conditions of high ambient noise -- PROVIDED the female voice is understood as having something important to communicate.
Oh, absolutely! Rofl, Dave Barry has us pegged!
We teen girls used to sprawl on one of our eyelet-lace bedspreads in high school, listening to music and going over and over a 20- second exchange earlier that day with some poor guy. “what do you think he Really Meant when he said he’d be there this weekend?” or “when he said ‘I’m ok.”? We could spin each few syllables of utterance into hours of analysis.
Now I have 3 sons. And I know now!! When a boy says he’s thinking about nothing, he really IS thinking about nothing! We sure wasted a lot of time on that bedspread analyzing!! We could have done equally well wondering if each breeze had hidden meanings.
AND
When I got to the end of my rant and finally asked him if he agreed with me on the topic at hand, his answer was, "sorry, I really wasn't listening to a word you said."
Maybe, I say just maybe, there's some kind of correlation going on here.
≤}B^)
If it were only that simple. I consider myself a good listener. I dated a woman a couple of years ago that I was very attracted to. Finally, after 2-3 months I told her flat out that I could no longer date her. When she asked me why I said, "Because you never ever shut up!"
We are still friends but the dating is over.
It's been years since I read the study - dealt with when a woman's voice should be used in an emergency and when a man's voice should be used. I'd probably get it backwards after all these years - but both types of voices in certain circumstances - are needed...
GGG?
I always listen to my wife, thirty years experience has shown me her wisdom. The "young things" have little to say-Fox News with their "info babes" is particularily guilty of the pretty face fallacy.
I once had a friend tell me that the sound of a baby crying was “A Joyous noise”
I told him it was the most horrible noise in the world. It was meant to be. If it was a joyous noise we would all just stand around and listen to it instead of changing, feeding, comforting. The child would be neglected.
Instead, everyone does whatever is necessary to MAKE IT STOP PLEASE!!!!!!!! and the child’s well being is assured.
Can’t explain the woman thing-other than they need to change their perspective as to how truly important they think every jewel is that rolls out of their mouth.
That is just downright sinister!
I have encountered as many male itches as female ones. Itch, itch, itch, about the so called lessor specimen. And then the male has the nerve to claim they were manipulated .... when they had the whole story told to them but they could not would not take the time to ‘listen’, and call it nagging... Now what is it they say about insanity????????????????????????
I agree. Plus some women have adopted really strange speech affectations in recent years. Every time Margaret Hoover starts blathering on Fox I immediately change channels -- it's literally painful to listen to her.
Men’s brains are always thinking about two things, “I want a beer, and I want to see something naked.” - Jeff Foxworthy
The woman in this article must be the same woman who does the “Voice” for the GPS system I have. “500 feet, turn left”. “200 feet, turn left”. “Turn left, NOW”. “TURN LEFT NOW”!!!
“DIDN’T YOU HEAR ME? I SAID TURN LEFT”!!!!
RECALCULATING...you dumb xxxxx
Personally, I have this theory that men are born with only so many words and we have to conserve them carefully through life. Grunts don’t count because they are not words and repeated words don’t count because they are an echo. We have to get the most out of each word as possible.
So far only a few men have run out of words before dying, we are that good at it.
Yes...it is, isn’t it?
>:-]
Most likely because they can’t understand intelligent voices. Now if we talked beer, NASCAR, dames, etc. they’d be paying attention and god forbid, even joining in the discussion. (LOL)
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