From the "no shit, Sherlock dept": men gossip more than women [View All]

Haven't you heard? Guys gossip too
By Gail Rosenblum

We're even-steven in the chatter department — and when it comes to down 'n' dirty dishing
Men, someone needs to tell you this, so it might as well be me.

You can deny it. You can call it "shop talk," "locker-room banter," "keeping in touch" or "networking." We heard last week about a study confirming that you talk as much as women, but here's a little known fact: You gossip just as much as women do, too.

This juicy tidbit comes courtesy of the Social Issues Research Centre (SIRC), a nonprofit think tank in England, which recently interviewed 1,000 cellphone users about how they use their phones for gossip and how gossip affects their lives. Many male participants initially denied that they gossip, according to the study, while nearly all of the females readily admitted to it. But come closer and listen to this: The study found that 33 percent of men indulge in gossip every day or almost every day, compared with 26 percent of women.

The study quoted a definition of gossip as "chatty talk among friends," and "the process of informally communicating value-laden information about members of a social setting."

Other findings essential to pass on to your 100 closest friends:

• Men are more likely to gossip with work colleagues, love partners and female friends; women prefer to dish primarily with female friends and relatives.

• Men gossip about work, politics or other highbrow topics less than 5 percent of the time, unless women are present. Then the proportion of male conversation devoted to sounding impressive increases to 15 or 20 percent.

• Men spend much more time than women talking about themselves.

Other studies, including those at the University of Virginia, Northeastern University in Boston and the University of Wisconsin, confirm that gossip is universal and gender-neutral.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/living/2003778067_mengossip090.html