Differences in Female vs Male Communication

Just like with electronic communication, the filters that communication or the message has to travel through impact the way the message is received. Females and males communicate differently (for the most part). The differences in female vs male communication is especially important for heterosexual relationships in which you communicate with the opposite sex every single day and depend on their emotional support to help you through the day. And b/c of this dependence on emotional support, problems occur. 

First and foremost – how do females and males communicate differently? A lot of the differences have to do with the way that girls are raised versus how boys are raised. When it comes to expressing emotions, it’s typical for parents to encourage their daughters to express emotions and to cry and not be embarrassed about it – especially if they are hurt. However, if their son cries, they typically tell them to ‘suck it up’ and ‘be a man.’ In this way, sons are taught that the only emotion that it’s okay to express is anger. 

Daughters are also more often encouraged to take care of others and to respond to other people with support and nurturing. Sons are taught to fix things that are broken and more importantly, if you have a problem, don’t talk about it, just fix it.

In relationships then, when your wife comes home from work and talks about what went on, husbands often give advice as feedback. Wives usually want support and validation that it’s okay to feel mad, sad, disappointed, or excited. Husbands rarely talk about their day and when they do, emotions often aren’t communicated. This leads to many wives feeling as though there is not a strong connection and feel left out of a part of their husband’s life.