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From: desjardins@h-sc1.UUCP (marie desjardins)
Newsgroups: net.singles
Subject: Re: More women do it than men
Message-ID: <425@h-sc1.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 5-Jul-85 12:33:53 EDT
Article-I.D.: h-sc1.425
Posted: Fri Jul  5 12:33:53 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 11-Jul-85 05:59:44 EDT
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Organization: Harvard Univ. Science Center
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> [Uh-oh.  Now it's "amateur psychologist".  Well, anyway...]
> 
> > I have read and heard one theory that women are more adept at recognizing
> > a relationship is over than men.  They therefore terminate it rather
> > than let it drag on.
> 
> Why might that be, though?  I mean, in general if you state, "men are more
> adept at X than women," you will immediately get attacked for the statement.
> Well, I will sort of do that too, in this case... why would women be "more
> adept" at this than men?

I think in general women are expected to be more diplomatic than men.
They are expected to be the peace-makers (this is purely a social 
phenomenon, I doubt it has anything to do with innate skills).  An 
essential quality of diplomacy is the ability to second-guess others,
and to read social situations, relationships, etc.  That is, women
are often more sensitive in these situations than men.

> On the other hand, women would
> tend to be exposed always to such attempts on the part of other men, who
> do not perceive them as being so attached; and some of these may be suffic-
> iently persistent as to generate some interest.  But this in itself would,
> I guess, lead to the sort of thing you mentioned; you are most likely to
> perceive the shortcomings in an existing relationship when you are
> periodically being presented with opportunities for new, "better" ones.

I don't think this is true.  If it were, women would be more likely to
take these opportunities (that is, break up for another man); I believe,
though, than a man are more likely to break up with one woman for another
woman than a woman is (to break up with one man for another).  [sorry,
no references, but I seem to remember reading it; also, it has been
true in my experience]

	marie