Communication

Deborah Tannen’s studies found these gender differences in communication styles:
Men tend to talk more than women in public situations, but women tend to talk more than men at home.
Females are more inclined to face each other and make eye contact when talking, while males are more likely to look away from each other.
Girls and women tend to talk at length about one topic, but boys and men tend to jump from topic to topic.
When listening, women make more noises such as “mm-hmm” and “uh-huh”, while men are more likely to listen silently.
Women are inclined to express agreement and support, while men are more inclined to debate.
However, not all research supports these claims. One study by Erina MacGeorge found only a 2% difference in the conversational styles of men and women, and reported that in general both sexes communicated in similar ways. Critics, including Suzette Haden Elgin, have suggested that Tannen's findings may apply more to women of certain specific cultural and economic groups than to women in general. There is no evidence to support the belief that women speak far more words than men.