The common idea of ​​the two sexes is that they are a dichotomy. The most important question parents are asked is “who is a boy or a girl?” But any tomboy will tell you that it's not that big of a deal. Based on an analysis of 13 past studies that showed significant differences between the sexes, it turned out that many of these differences are not as pronounced as previously thought. The “Big Five” personality traits in psychology, which include openness, agreeableness, extraversion, conscientiousness and neuroticism, do not demonstrate fundamental and profound differences in men and women. Contrary to prevailing stereotypes, women did not find any special intimacy in relationships, and a penchant for science is not only the lot of men. Masculinity and femininity, the authors of the analysis found, are not all-or-nothing traits. In fact, they form a single and continuous spectrum. Gender is by no means such a restrictive and defining category as stereotypes and some scientific studies would have us believe. In physical terms, men and women are indeed divided into two clear and well-defined categories according to such indicators, like height and waist-to-hip ratio. But in terms of psychology, there are few differences. Men and women are quite similar in traits such as empathy, fear of failure and choice of partner. This suggests that the differences between the sexes are not categorical - rather, it is a matter of degree of difference. Carothers and psychology professor Harry Reis reexamined data from 13 studies that showed significant differences between the sexes. In addition, they collected their own data on psychological indicators. In search of evidence that certain characteristics are more reliably classified as male or female, they used three different statistical techniques. A statistical analysis of 13,301 people on 122 different characteristics - from empathy and sexuality to aptitude for scientific activities - did not reveal clear differences between men and women. Gender may be an indicator of some stereotypical activity, for example, embroidery or boxing, but the thoughts of men and women about their relationships are “not qualitatively different” from each other, no matter what the authors of the books write - instructions like “Men are from Mars, women are from Venus.” Yes, there are typical differences between the sexes, but they are not consistent or consistent enough to accurately characterize an entire sex. Just because a man or woman fits one stereotype of their gender does not mean they fit others. “The presence of traits associated with gender is not so simple as to be an either/or proposition,” the authors write. Research: The study is based on surveys of people, and the authors acknowledge that the results may not fully reflect real-life facts because people do not always report accurate information about themselves. Scientists are leaving the door open for new research that will determine gender through patterns of interpersonal behavior. But dividing men and women into different and simplistic categories can be detrimental to heterosexual relationships, Reis says. “When things go wrong between partners, people are often quick to say it's because of their gender,” he explains. “Gender stereotypes prevent people from seeing their partners as individuals.” Belonging to a different sex is not the main thing that makes us think of a partner as a person from another planet. “Difficulties arise primarily not because of gender, but because of the character of the person,” Reis says. Based on: Science Confirms The Obvious: Men And Women Aren't That Different