Question: Why do women wash their hands more often then men?

[xcrystalxtx]

I have conducted my research and started on my research essay but im still cant find a certain quesion, plz help. This question is my science project on " Which gender washes their hands most often after using a public restrrom" but ti finish my research essay i need to know why "Why do women wash their hands more often then men?"

[tdaly]

How do you know that women wash their hands more often than men? Unless I'm misunderstanding you, the goal of your experiment is to determine which gender washes their hands more frequently after using a public restroom. If you haven't done your experiment yet, how do you know which gender washes their hands more frequently?.

[xcrystalxtx]

Well i have done my research and every single expert i asked on the question and on the internet articles have stated that Females wash their hands more often, but for my essay i dont want to know the percent that do but why they do it.

[tdaly]

Thanks for your reply. It sounds like you've been doing your homework, which is good. If we accept as fact that there is strong evidence that women wash their hands more often than men do aftering a public restroom, then perhaps you could answer your question by surverying people as they come out of the bathroom. Ask them if they washed their hands, and if they did, why they did. If they didn't. ask why they did not.

Now, just a word to the wise: you are dealing with an issue of social decorum. People aren't very likely to say "I didn't wash my hands," so if you do do a survey, it will likely be very biased. We can talk more about overcoming these sorts of problems, if you wish.

[ChrisG]

i dont want to know the percent that do but why they do it.

The short answer is that we don't know. Gender differences are a contentious topic in science, and it is very difficult to pin down specific reasons for broad social behavior. That said, there are various theories floating around, most of which hinge on the question of whether our behavior is caused by our genetics or by our upbringing. For example, on the side of genetics, some theorize that women are more predisposed to avoid health hazards in general because ancestral women who avoided diseases were better able to keep their children from becoming ill, and therefore had better success at passing on their genes and the associated behavior to future generations. This assumes that whether men came into contact with pathogens (germs) had less influence on their reproductive success, perhaps, for example, because they did not have as much close contact with their children. On the other side of the spectrum, you'll find theories that our behavior is primarily a result of our upbringing. In other words, girls may be taught that staying clean is an important aspect of being female, whereas hand washing and other behavior associated with cleanliness may not be not emphasized as much when teaching behavior to boys.

FYI, here is a link to the study that I believe most people are thinking of when they say that women wash their hands more often than men
http://www.asm.org/Media/index.asp?bid=21773

I think it would be an interesting experiment to survey children and parents about whether they think genetics or upbringing has a greater influence on personality, but maybe that is a topic for another science fair.