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UK Wedding News

25/10/2013

Females 'Are Better At Multitasking'

New research has revealed that women are better than their male counterparts when it comes to multitasking.

This is especially true when those tasks include searching for lost or misplaced items.

The study, which was carried out by researchers at Glasgow, Leeds and Hertfordshire university and published in the journal BMC Psychology, found that women are more likely to find car keys during the early morning rush, when breakfast has to be eaten, children need to be dressed, and teeth and hair need to be brushed.

Those behind the study suggested women may be "superior at tasks requiring high-level cognitive control".

For the research, men were pitted against women in two experiments which were designed to simulate real-life situations where people have to juggle several tasks and then work out how best to move from one task to the other – while still getting everything done.

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These scenarios included cooking a number of dishes at once for a meal, or working in a busy office.

For the first experience, volunteers played a computer game that required quick changes of attention. Both men and women did slow down, but the women slowed less.

As a result, researchers say this suggests females found multitasking to be easier.

The second experiment saw volunteers given eight minutes to complete a set of sums, look for restaurants on a map and to draw out the route they would take to search for a set of keys lost in a field. In addition, they had to deal with the distraction of a ringing phone and answer general knowledge questions if they picked up the phone.

Both genders did well in most tasks, with the "key hunt" being the exception. However, it was found that the searches proposed by the women were superior to the men's plans.

Lead researcher, Gijsbert Stoet, of Glasgow University, said the idea of women being better at multitasking could have its roots in evolution, explaining: "In the Stone Age, men could probably go out and hunt for food, whereas the women stayed at the base and multi-tasked.

"They were always looking out for their toddlers and other children, while doing other stuff like gathering mushrooms and fruits and doing mending and making stone tools.

"Men probably have somewhat more of a one-track mind."

(JP/CD)

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"New research has revealed that women are better than their male counterparts when it comes to multitasking."