It is generally thought that more women do gossip. In fact, when the images with gossip on Google are analyzed by experts working on this subject, it is seen that gossip is represented by women with a rate of 62%. The representation rate of men in gossip images is 7%.
Of course, this situation seems to reinforce the belief that “men do not gossip”, but this is not the case at all. Studies have shown that men gossip at least as much as women. You will be very surprised when you hear the results of the research…
In fact, gossip did not have a negative connotation in traditional times as it does today.
When we look at the oldest use of gossip; We can say that it is a way of socially gathering and transmitting information about who is bad, who is good, who cannot be trusted, or who speaks nonsense. Even evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar; suggests that language evolved for humans to gossip. Pretty interesting isn’t it?
In fact, it can be said that gossip is a form of communication that ensures social cohesion and prevents people from conflicting with each other. For example, when we look at the meaning of gossip during the Middle Ages, we see that it was a form of speech used by women who gave birth to support each other.
The meaning of gossip changed over time and turned into a negative behavior of anyone who makes empty talk (gossippers), including friends or acquaintances. This situation is 16-18. It was regarded as a bad form of communication, accused of witchcraft in Europe between the 19th and 16th centuries. Especially in medieval Europe witch hunts, women were accused of gossiping. Subsequently, gossip was perceived as negative statements made by women and took its place in society in this way.
For example, conversations (that is, gossip) in which men displayed their intelligence and intellectual abilities in English coffee houses in the 17th and 18th centuries were also included in the category of serious conversations. So gossip is called a kind of serious conversation. At this very point, in a research conducted by a psychologist, it is stated that gossip is actually used as a political discourse by men. Because usually men gossip by continuing to talk about gossip by saying “I don’t gossip but…”. So men make it a strategic and ideological tool. In other words, you might think that men are covering up what they do by describing their gossip as another type of conversation.
In fact, gossip is a way of expressing positive and negative emotions:
For example, you can often see people gossip about each other in the workplace. We can also think of gossip as a reaction against the social injustice in the environment. In this case, we can see that gossip is a very human condition and independent of genders.
For example, some may criticize unethical or unprofessional attitudes in the workplace by gossiping with another person. In a sense, this situation can improve things and everyone who works can start to do their part more carefully. Again, it is seen that people who work in this field say that when a sexual abuse case is seen in an institution, gossip about the subject is better than being silent. Because, according to researchers, it is possible to reveal a truth that everyone avoids telling. Of course, these were the acceptable aspects of gossip. For example, gossip made to criticize and defame a person without reason is a type of bullying that damages the person’s reputation, which is considered quite bad by most people.
Both men and women gossip, but the purposes of gossiping are different from each other.
A study published in the Journal of Gender Studies examines whether gossiping differs by gender. A survey is applied to a group of 2230 participants, and in the survey, the participants are asked to describe someone they have just met as if they were describing them to a friend. In the research findings that emerged, it is determined that women and men gossip at the same rate.
Although similar results have been found in other studies on gossip, there is an important nuance difference. That is, the purpose of using gossip between men and women is different. Studies show that women gossip more about social issues such as the physical appearance of others or their relationships.
It is determined that men use gossip more aggressively and competitively. In other words, the purpose of gossiping for men is to exclude people they see as rivals from the environment. In short, we cannot say that a group of women or men gossip more. We can only mention that both sexes gossip but the way they do it is different. What do you think, apart from what you’ve read, what kind of relationship does gossip have with gender? You can write your thoughts in the comments.
Editor’s Note: “If men and women gossip equally, why are most of the women in the pictures?” I would like to warn our esteemed readers who come to comment. Of course, your reasoning is logical, but as you read in the introduction, there are very few pictures of men gossiping because the general social acceptance that ‘women gossip more’ has spread to the media. In addition, since most of the pictures in which men are associated with gossip are not in accordance with our visual usage policy, I could not include them in this article. For this reason, the pictures of women were necessarily used more. Love.
Sources: Taylor and Francis, BBC, Academia, The Hungry JPEG, The Outline
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