According to the stereotype, men are an uncooperative lot. Maybe even socially inept. At least relative to the masters of getting-along: women.
But maybe not. In the least, the stereotype is a gross exaggeration (as most are). A recent study has found that, according to "a quantitative review of 272 studies comprising 31,642 participants in 18 countries" -
Men and women cooperate equally for the common good
A little more specifically, "men are equally cooperative, particularly in situations involving a dilemma that pits the interests of an individual against the interests of a group."
Hmm. And then there is this:
While there was no statistical difference between the sexes when it came to cooperating when faced with a social dilemma, when the researchers drilled down they did find some differences. Specifically, women were more cooperative than men in mixed-sex studies and men became more cooperative than women in same-sex studies and when the social dilemma was repeated. [emphasis added]
Slight red flag there. This basically a re-analysis of existing data. Which isn't bad. It just isn't excellent. Meaning that we shouldn't use this one piece of research to base an opinion or conclusion upon. Rather, the rational individual weighs as much information as he or she can. And depending upon the quality and quantity of that information, comes to a position of proportional confidence.
On a related note, will future research show that women are nearly as aggressive as men, particularly if less-violent forms of aggression are included in the measure? I wonder.
Tags: gender, social psychology
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