# Women are better drivers



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Does gender matter?


----------



## KILOBRAVO (Sep 17, 2011)

i voted depends on individual.

i think men are more likely to think about the technical and mechanical aspects of how the car works.. or have more knowledge of the workign of the car.... more women seem less interested in those sorts of things... 

but overall I think either gender are probably more or less equally competent... you get idiot women drivers and idiot men drivers...


----------



## gopherinferno (Apr 7, 2009)

i've only totaled one car ever. _one._


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

gopherinferno said:


> i've only totaled one car ever. _one._


So?


----------



## gopherinferno (Apr 7, 2009)

TheVoid said:


> So?


i never know what to do when people don't get a joke

so i'm just gonna make another joke...

why did the chicken cross the road?

to get to the liquor store because he knows his marriage is failing


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

I think men in general are more skilled at driving, and women knowing this are in general less confident which reduces their performance even further unfortunately. However it seems men are more reckless and that doesn't always pay off.


----------



## Dre12 (Jul 25, 2014)

Women are safer drivers no question. Young men especially are absolute nobs in cars.

I find women to be the major perpetrators of nonsensical driving on the motorway though. Most drivers, both men and women, fail to grasp the importance of keeping your distance, however. This annoys me to no end.


----------



## visualkeirockstar (Aug 5, 2012)

I heard women are worst because they like to multitask.


----------



## acidicwithpanic (May 14, 2014)

Then you haven't met me.

Almost wrecked my mom's car after I drifted in the rain because I just wanted to learn physics.


----------



## Darktower776 (Aug 16, 2013)

I've experienced terrible, crazy driving from both genders. Sometimes it surprises you that the speeding, reckless driver was an old lady and not a teenager.


----------



## nubly (Nov 2, 2006)

visualkeirockstar said:


> I heard women are worst because they like to multitask.


Yea I wish chicks would concentrate on the road more.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## 0blank0 (Sep 22, 2014)

I think men are better drivers tbh lol
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## layitontheline (Aug 19, 2009)

Whenever I look over at someone who was driving retardedly, 9 times out of 10 it's a woman.


----------



## karenw (Aug 20, 2012)

Going by a mans perspective, men let men/women out at junctions but women do this far less, but from mine women are more careful not feeling the need to speed. Yes women are better drivers as I couldn't care less about speed. Tbf I care for my safety in a car.


----------



## SD92 (Nov 9, 2013)

I always thought women were safer drivers as they are less likely to go over the speed limit just to impress people like 'boy racers' hence why insurance cost more for men in the UK than women, but I think the EU made them change that.

Of course it depends on the individual person as well.


----------



## MiMiK (Aug 25, 2011)

ive seen to many girls putting on makeup while driving... its crazy


----------



## 3Haney (Jul 9, 2015)

I really don't think gender plays any kind of role in how well an individual operates a motor vehicle.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> I think men in general are more skilled at driving


I disagree completely with this myth. Men do NOT have some kind of a magical driving skill. It's absolute BS.

The reason why a majority of men are more skilled is simply because they get more driving time behind the wheel. For example, if you are a couple, it's the man who almost always drives.

Here are the contributing factors to your individual driving skills:

-- Personality
-- Amount of driving time


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

3Haney said:


> I really don't think gender plays any kind of role in how well an individual operates a motor vehicle.


Exactly.

The reason why I asked this question is because I get a lot of heat from male commuters who seem to believe that they are better.

When confronted, people say it isn't gender-based but the stereotypical belief still exists deep within.

This is annoying because I know I am a superb driver, but I have to take crap from amateur wannabe-racer teenagers on the road simply because I am a woman.


----------



## Blue Dino (Aug 17, 2013)

I think it depends most with the person's background, whether they grew up in an environment where they have to drive much or not. Age is also a secondary factor, once you're older your reaction time and thought processing becomes slower, but I personally don't think that factors in for most people until they hit their 70s.


----------



## indiscipline (May 24, 2015)

Hm. I wonder why there are no charts on which gender is the better cyclist. 

I'm gonna start printing label stickers reading "men can't bike", put them on my carrier and crash into a tree (just to make it so).


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

TheVoid said:


> I disagree completely with this myth. Men do NOT have some kind of a magical driving skill. It's absolute BS.
> 
> The reason why a majority of men are more skilled is simply because they get more driving time behind the wheel. For example, if you are a couple, it's the man who almost always drives.
> 
> ...


No, men have been shown to do better from the very beginning on average, even while learning/taking their test. They also have better spatial awareness on average.

If you find some research that shows the accuracy levels of women and men at the same experience level than please do provide it though. I have no real stake in this argument being female myself.


----------



## Mondo_Fernando (Jun 26, 2014)

karenw said:


> women are more careful not feeling the need to speed.


This lady had the need for speed -






She set the overall record in a Group-B Rally car at Pikes Peak -






A record that no female driver has beaten so far that I know of.


----------



## karenw (Aug 20, 2012)

Well from my experience women are better drivers mkay


----------



## bittersweetavenue (Jan 1, 2015)

Aren't there studies shown that men are more likely to act on impulse? I can't be bothered looking for it but I agree that it depends on the individual.


----------



## Aribeth (Jan 14, 2012)

bittersweetavenue said:


> Aren't there studies shown that men are more likely to act on impulse? I can't be bothered looking for it but I agree that it depends on the individual.


There's no way men are more impulsive than women at anything in this world.


----------



## karenw (Aug 20, 2012)

What about multi- tasking Lol


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

gopherinferno said:


> i never know what to do when people don't get a joke
> 
> so i'm just gonna make another joke...
> 
> ...


HAHA! :grin2:

The chicken is male?


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> No, men have been shown to do better from the very beginning on average, even while learning/taking their test. They also have better spatial awareness on average.
> 
> If you find some research that shows the accuracy levels of women and men at the same experience level than please do provide it though. I have no real stake in this argument being female myself.


A simple google search will show you a lot of research that says that gender plays no role. Being female yourself, it is pretty sad that you voluntarily believe a myth that probably the men in your life made you to believe. Tsk tsk!


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

TheVoid said:


> A simple google search will show you a lot of research that says that gender plays no role. Being female yourself, it is pretty sad that you voluntarily believe a myth that probably the men in your life made you to believe. Tsk tsk!


Everything I said is correct based on research, gender does appear to play a role.

Next time you want to make a thread to rant about how some silly teenagers had a go at you maybe post in frustration and don't create a debate thread where you just go getting annoyed at everyone who says something you don't want to hear tsk tsk. :lol

Pathetic.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> No, men have been shown to do better...


Sounds like stockholm syndrome



> Female Drivers
> 
> While statistically considered "safer" drivers, women have often been socially stereotyped as "bad drivers." Some psychologists have wondered if women buy into this belief and succumb to the "stereotype threat" in a way that actually affects their driving and confidence.
> 
> As reported in an article for AAA, an Australian study found that women in a driving simulator who were given negative stereotypes about women drivers were twice as likely to collide with a jaywalking pedestrian than women drivers not given the stereotype.


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

TheVoid said:


> Sounds like stockholm syndrome


I read that page that you spent oh so long finding on the first page of Google. Nothing in it conflicts with what I said. I acknowledged that lack of confidence would effect women's performance further. Men take more risks, but are typically more skilled, women are safer because they're more cautious.



> Actually the answer to the question of who drives better depends on the criteria and reflects the differences. According Tom Vanderbilt, author of Traffic, some research suggests that men do show more technical proficiency in driving as well as a greater tendency to declare themselves "above average drivers."
> 
> In a study of male and female drivers of varying experience levels attempting to park in a closed-off parking garage, men parked more quickly and more accurately.
> When young drivers take the in-car portion of the driving test in the UK, young males do statistically better than young females.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> I read that page that you spent oh so long finding on the first page of Google.


I don't have details of all the research stored in my memory to be produced on demand. So, when you demand research, YES, I have to search and find.

I'm confident that I have seen a lot of quite recent research that says that anyone will do generally equally given the same amount of driving time behind the wheels. It's 50-50.


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

TheVoid said:


> Frankly, most of the research I have read gives points to both sides quite equally. The final verdict usually takes the taste of the person who believes. Like in your case, you DO believe that you are worse from birth or biologically designed in a way to be worse than men, so you probably always will be...


No, I don't believe I am biologically worse than men, just different.

And I don't believe stereotype threat accounts for the entire difference either. Nor is there evidence currently that supports that.

You got from what I said that women are worse at driving just because I said men tend to be more skilled.

The fact that they are involved in more accidents doesn't really lend to them being 'better drivers' but I see you're one of those people that has to win every contest or gets pissed.

You think this makes you inferior which is why this is annoying you.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> I see you're one of those people that has to win every contest or gets pissed.


You keep insinuating that you are cool and you don't have a real need to prove yourself while you are still here trying to prove your point. 
:grin2:



Persephone The Dread said:


> You think this makes you inferior which is why this is annoying you.


Yes, it is annoying. I don't feel the need to lie that I am not annoyed when I am. I don't want to say one thing and then act the other.

So, YES, it is annoying to be stereotyped as a "less skilled driver because you have a ***** instead of a penis". Not to brag or anything but I am a skilled driver to say the least. Ridiculous gender stereotypes make life a living hell for me on the road. You probably don't understand this if you are in the US but being an Easterner, where the society is already super sexist, it does matter.


----------



## blue2 (May 20, 2013)

Indeed


----------



## Owl Eyes (May 23, 2011)

It's funny how the majority of people agreeing men are better drivers seem to be women. I voted that it depends on the individual, but women may tend to be worse because of stigmas.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> You got from what I said that women are worse at driving just because I said men tend to be more skilled.


Yes. Of course. LOL! 
Oh was I supposed to read your comment as "Men tend to be more skilled at driving but hey, that doesn't make women less skilled?"


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

TheVoid said:


> You keep insinuating that you are cool and you don't have a real need to prove yourself while you are still here trying to prove your point.
> :grin2:
> 
> Yes, it is annoying. I don't feel the need to lie that I am not annoyed when I am. I don't want to say one thing and then act the other.
> ...


I didn't say I was cool, but thank you. ;D

Your attitude annoyed me _after _ I made that post. I now know you live in a sexist country which probably warps your view on things. That is unfortunate.

And good for you. It's not like individual variation can't occur, but we were discussing women and men as a whole with this thread not you. Or at least that was supposed to be the point.

Oh and I live in the UK, not the US.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Owl Eyes said:


> It's funny how the majority of people agreeing men are better drivers seem to be women. I voted that it depends on the individual, but women may tend to be worse because of stigmas.


Totally agree.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> I didn't say I was cool, but thank you. ;D


I didn't say you were cool. You are welcome!

I said you were trying to be cool. Judging by how you have not extracted the essence of most of these researches that you talk about, I am not surprised you didn't read between the lines in this case.



Persephone The Dread said:


> I now know you live in a sexist country which probably warps your view on things.


No sexism doesn't wrap anything up for me. Sexism wraps other people's views on me and all female commuters behind wheels. It's harmful.


----------



## missingno (Sep 29, 2011)

The best drivers are racing cars for a living. I wonder which gender dominates that...


----------



## blue2 (May 20, 2013)

missingno said:


> The best drivers are racing cars for a living. I wonder which gender dominates that...


How do ya figure racing cars have crashed plenty...


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

missingno said:


> The best drivers are racing cars for a living


Years of hardcore training to speed on a dedicated racing track for a sport. Yea, that's not the same as driving on public roads...

Btw, the anti-feminist bit in your signature gave me a chuckle


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

TheVoid said:


> I didn't say you were cool. You are welcome!
> 
> I said you were trying to be cool. Judging by how you have not extracted the essence of most of these researches that you talk about, I am not surprised you didn't read between the lines in this case.
> 
> No sexism doesn't wrap anything up for me. Sexism wraps other people's views on me and all female commuters behind wheels. It's harmful.


It's there on the page you quoted, looking at beginner drivers in the UK men performed better on average.

Also:



> Statistics collected by insurance companies and federal safety regulators consistently reveal gender-based differences in driving behaviour. Women are more likely to be involved in accidents based on slips or lapses (like distracted driving) while men are more likely to have accidents based on deliberate or risk-taking behaviour (such as speeding). One insurance company determined that men were 3.4 times more likely than women to be cited for aggressive driving. And when men were involved in crashes, they were 27 per cent more likely than women to be considered at fault (the result of riskier driving).
> 
> After studying years worth of traffic data, researchers at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh determined that men are more than twice as likely to die in a car crash as women. Although men drive more than women do (approximately 60 per cent more, on average) their risk of a serious crash is still higher on a per-mile basis. Researchers found that women took shorter trips than men, and had a higher number of minor accidents. But men are 70 per cent more likely to be involved a serious crash.
> 
> Vanderbilt says these gender-based differences can't be used to conclude that either sex is better behind the wheel. As a group, men seem to have the edge when it comes to car handling, but women appear to have better judgment. Vanderbilt says the end result is a wash: "I would humbly suggest that, in a bid to improve safety on the roads, we dispense with the idea that women are not as good at driving than men," he says. "But we also need to do away with the idea that men are better drivers than women. Both stereotypes are unflattering, and not strictly true."


http://www.theglobeandmail.com/glob...-women-who-are-better-drivers/article1389780/

You're supposed to prove me wrong, and after that I could then provide evidence that refutes what you provide, if I knew of any or cared enough to continue this. But I'm pretty much done now. The only reason I kept responding was because, like I said, your attitude annoyed me.

Stereotype threat is always a consideration which is why I put in my first post that the lack of confidence would be likely to affect women's ability, but there is no evidence that suggests that the women in that experiment you linked are on average as technically proficient as men overall. All it proves is that being less confident makes you perform worse.


----------



## crimeclub (Nov 7, 2013)

I can barely trust a woman to drive a shopping cart when she's getting food for my sandwiches.


----------



## Marko3 (Mar 18, 2014)

I think it depends on the driver.. but is also scientifically proven (Isaw documentaries on TV .. ok if i believe in that) that 3D spatial awareness is linked to levels of testosterone... so on average men should have better spatial awareness thus they should drive safer.. but sadly thats not the case... they like to show off and speed drive more than females.. 

I also heard females in england pay less for their car insurance because they cause less accidents than males....


----------



## SamanthaStrange (Jan 13, 2015)

crimeclub said:


> I can barely trust a woman to drive a shopping cart when she's getting food for my sandwiches.


:surprise:

:laugh:


----------



## gopherinferno (Apr 7, 2009)

Marko3 said:


> I think it depends on the driver.. but is also scientifically proven (Isaw documentaries on TV .. ok if i believe in that) that 3D *spatial awareness is linked to levels of testosterone.*.. so on average men should have better spatial awareness thus they should drive safer.. but sadly thats not the case... they like to show off and speed drive more than females..
> 
> I also heard females in england pay less for their car insurance because they cause less accidents than males....


if this is the case, women should be driving more shortly before and during their periods because that's when there is relatively more testosterone in their system. if you're ridin red, ladies, take the wheel.


----------



## Marko3 (Mar 18, 2014)

gopherinferno said:


> if this is the case, women should be driving more shortly before and during their periods because that's when there is relatively more testosterone in their system. if you're ridin red, ladies, take the wheel.


lol


----------



## identificationunknown (Jan 23, 2014)

It really depends on the individual.


----------



## crimeclub (Nov 7, 2013)

gopherinferno said:


> if this is the case, women should be driving more shortly before and during their periods because that's when there is relatively more testosterone in their system. if you're ridin red, ladies, take the wheel.


You really drove your point home with this post. (And not a single fender-bender, good job!)

I'm here all week.


----------



## Mxx1 (Feb 3, 2015)

Really depends on the person. Women tend to be more carefully when driving, but some of them often talk often in phone too when they drive, which often cause accidents. While men on the other hand have a tendence to drive too fast and can be more wilder when driving. 

About the fact that men is better to drive, which i have often heard. I really do not know, my sister loves fixing cars and have a collection of many different car types. It depends on the person and how interested they are in cars.


----------



## Mondo_Fernando (Jun 26, 2014)

TheVoid said:


> Years of hardcore training to speed on a dedicated racing track for a sport. Yea, that's not the same as driving on public roads...


I believe it takes more skill to drive at higher speeds (everything happens alot quicker than when on the road), especially on a racetrack where the car is setup for cornering and is a handful.

That is what was so awesome about that French lady I posted (rally car driver), her driving skills tamed one of the most hardest to drive cars. Anyone that knows how dangerous those high hp Group-B rally cars can be on gravel appreciates how skilled that lady was to keep it on the road and set that overall record (previously held by a man).

Also what applies on a dedicated racetrack can apply to the road (gravel roads).



Mxx1 said:


> It depends on the person and how interested they are in cars.


I agree. :smile2:


----------



## M0rbid (Jan 11, 2011)

Asian women in the other hand.......


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> It's there on the page you quoted, looking at beginner drivers in the UK men performed better on average.


Most of these researches are interpreted by grumpy old men who already believe that their testosterone makes them ...umm what is it? more spacial aware? Lol

Really, you haven't been reading the research right... Most of these researches suggest that both genders will perform equally - the reason why men would show better results is social stigma against women. Read the article again and it shows how negative feedback gets into your head, making you worser than you actually are.

There's a slight chance that men can be more daring though, because of the whole testosterone thing. But, this probably makes those dare-devil wannabes drive faster, which people usually interpret as either good driving or just show-offs.

Of course, if you already believe that you are less skilled, you are more likely to interpret it as "He has a dic* and a constant source of testosterone to match it, so he must be a more skilled driver." Good luck with that.



Persephone The Dread said:


> if I cared enough to continue this


LOL! I think you DO care. I bet you cannot even sleep thinking about this. You have continued to page 3 of this thread so let's let your actions speak louder than your words.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

M0rbid said:


> Asian women in the other hand.......


are better drivers? 
:grin2:


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

crimeclub said:


> I can barely trust a woman to drive a shopping cart when she's getting food for my sandwiches.


Bland. Clearly, testosterone doesn't help you have better thinking ability or a decent sense of humour...


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

ANX1 said:


> I believe it takes more skill to drive at higher speeds


Of course it does. The point is that the "fast driving skill" is linked to practice than your gender.



ANX1 said:


> That is what was so awesome about that French lady I posted (rally car driver), her driving skills tamed one of the most hardest to drive cars.


Indeed


----------



## AussiePea (Mar 27, 2007)

To me it's not gender but nationality (and where someone is trained to drive).


----------



## crimeclub (Nov 7, 2013)

TheVoid said:


> Bland. Clearly, testosterone doesn't help you have better thinking ability or a decent sense of humour...


That hurt me to the core.


----------



## Marko3 (Mar 18, 2014)

karenw said:


> I know what you are saying but you could also say we are multi-tasking ie concentrating on the road & applying makeup


well.. on May 29th I had car accident..

one young lady of 25 in black BMW, driving opposite direction towards me.. she was preoccupied with her phone, so she got to my driving lane.... her car speeding still, going straight on me head on... It all happened in seconds.. I thought she was making a suicide... I steered off road the last moment, crashed my car in the roadside ditch, hitting concrete wall... her car was untouched..

*Damn phones*...

I'm lucky I'm still alive...


----------



## Dre12 (Jul 25, 2014)

karenw said:


> Going by a mans perspective, men let men/women out at junctions but women do this far less, but from mine women are more careful not feeling the need to speed. Yes women are better drivers as I couldn't care less about speed. Tbf I care for my safety in a car.


Yeah, I have to leave a car park onto a busy road after work and 90% of the time it is women that don't let you out.


----------



## Milco (Dec 12, 2009)

Let's all repeat it together: Statistical group trends cannot be applied directly to individuals.
This ought to go without saying, but too often it's forgotten, it seems.



karenw said:


> I know what you are saying but you could also say we are multi-tasking ie concentrating on the road & applying makeup


Multitasking isn't a real thing though.
Research suggests you focus on one thing at a time and just change focus.


----------



## karenw (Aug 20, 2012)

Milco said:


> Let's all repeat it together: Statistical group trends cannot be applied directly to individuals.
> This ought to go without saying, but too often it's forgotten, it seems.
> 
> Multitasking isn't a real thing though.
> Research suggests you focus on one thing at a time and just change focus.


How can multi-tasking not be a real thing? you multi-task in a work situ for a start.


----------



## Milco (Dec 12, 2009)

karenw said:


> How can multi-tasking not be a real thing? you multi-task in a work situ for a start.


You can of course be doing two tasks concurrently, say cooking food and talking on the phone, but research suggests people simply change focus back and forth between cooking and talking/listening, and so are not focussed on the other thing meanwhile, rather than focus on both things at the same time, which is what's meant by multi-tasking.
And we generally aren't that good at changing between tasks. It's most apparent when the tasks are similar to each other, like writing an e-mail while having a conversation, but it applies generally even when more subtle.


----------



## Persephone The Dread (Aug 28, 2010)

TheVoid said:


> Most of these researches are interpreted by grumpy old men who already believe that their testosterone makes them ...umm what is it? more spacial aware? Lol
> 
> Really, you haven't been reading the research right... Most of these researches suggest that both genders will perform equally - the reason why men would show better results is social stigma against women. Read the article again and it shows how negative feedback gets into your head, making you worser than you actually are.
> 
> ...


I continued to respond because you were and _Removed_. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I care about your attitude, yeah. That is clearly evident.

And I guess it's silly when people refute claims with emotional reasoning. Sure, they're just grumpy old men. Everytime someone says something you don't want to hear it's because they're grumpy old men yup. I am so convinced.

And no, as I've repeatedly said, the increased speed/riskyness does not make them seem like better drivers it actually makes them seem/become worse drivers because they're not being sensible.


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Persephone The Dread said:


> I care about your attitude, yeah


Why?
Earlier you said you don't care but now you say you care. WHY do you care so much about an attitude of a random person on the Internet? Stop embarrassing yourself. It isn't my attitude that you should care about. It is yours.
:smile2:



Persephone The Dread said:


> And I guess it's silly when people refute claims with emotional reasoning


Pointing out the fact that you wholeheartedly missed the essence of the research isn't emotional. It is logical. 
:grin2:


----------



## TheVoid (Nov 2, 2008)

Milco said:


> Let's all repeat it together: Statistical group trends cannot be applied directly to individuals.


I don't even buy most of these research interpretations. Not sure if they were conducted with properly-controlled, large-enough or random-enough samples in the first place to derive probable conclusions that can be applied to an entire population.

But yea, nothing can make people who are already convinced of something to wrap their brain around otherwise.


----------



## shyvr6 (Feb 18, 2008)

This thread was only staying open since it was being lighthearted, but as usual, these types of discussions get serious. Thread closed for bigotry.


----------

