Differences in Boy & Girl Behavior

If you have children of both sexes, it's likely that you can attest to the fact that boys and girls are different from each other 2. Boys and girls mature at different paces, they act differently and they are interested in different things 2. The differences between boys and girls are not myths perpetrated by a sexist society -- at least not entirely 12. There are some significant differences between the behavior you will see in your children of both genders.

Brutal Honesty

ABC News and researcher Campbell Leaper of the University of California conducted a study in which they served male and female children lemonade made with salt instead of sugar. In general, the girls tried to choke it down, but the boys reacted differently. The boys told researchers that the lemonade needed sugar and one even spit it out. “"Boys are allowed to talk back to their parents more than girls are, to assert their will more," Leaper said, in explaining why the boys and girls reacted so differently 2. You may find that asking your son a question results in a vastly different answer than what you would hear from a girl.

Listen Up

Signs of Autism in a Three-Year-Old

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According an article on the Parenting website called “The Real Difference Between Boys and Girls,” by Anita Sethi, Ph.D., little girls are better listeners than their male counterparts 12. “Recent research shows that girls are more attuned to the sound of human voices and seem to actually prefer the sound to other sounds,” she says. “Shake a rattle and you'll see no difference between newborn girls and boys, but when you talk, the girls will be more likely to become engaged.” When you talk to your little girl, she probably is listening 1. When you talk to your little boy, he might or might not be paying attention to what you are saying.

Have no Fear

Sethi also suggests that boys are much less fearful than girls 2. “According to a recent survey, the parents of boys ages 3 to 12 months were much less likely than the parents of girls the same age to report that the child startles in response to loud noises or stimuli,” she says. As they get older, boys might be more likely to do things that girls their age might be more hesitant to do, such as climb a high tree or participate in a risky activity. As a result, you may find that your little boys need a bit more supervision than little girls.