“Weekend Edition Saturday, NPR, According to a new Vatican study, Roman Catholic men and women sin differently. The study was based on confessions taken by Roberto Busa, a 95-year-old Jesuit scholar. The results were supported by the Catholic Church.”
Father Jim Martin shares his thoughts about the study, explaining that for men, top sins were lust, gluttony and sloth. Women were most guilty of pride, envy and anger. He wraps it all up by saying, “This study actually makes sense, as much as we don’t want to generalize about the sexes, but, you know, I don’t want to argue with a 95-year-old Jesuit scholar.”
Why is this the least surprising thing I’ve heard all month? Because, like, DUH! WOMEN ARE FROM VENUS AND MEN ARE FROM MARS! Women, at their worst are gossipy, jealous little loose cannons! Men are inherently unfaithful and (especially around super bowl season) are prone to eating a ton of BBQ wings (gluttony) and then falling asleep before mowing the lawn (sloth!). Women are (naturally) jealous that their husbands are cheating on them, so they gossip about it all day on the phone.
But seriously. The Catholic church is obsessed with the gender dichotomy and insisting men and women are naturally different.
I could go on forever about this, but I wont. REAL studies have indicated again and again that very few “differences” exist between men and women. Instead, gender roles are created differently in different cultures according to different rules and ideas and scripts, etc etc etc. Women are not born jealous. Men are not born cheaters. The next time you see a 4 week old infant wearing a blue jumpsuit with a dump truck embroidered on the chest, ask yourself, is that 4 week old particularly fond of dump trucks? It shouldn’t be too shocking to know that parents dress their babies far before the babies can express an interest in dump trucks, or other stereotypically gendered items. Parents, caregivers, teachers, media, friends, and countless other sources reinforce and punish behavior and help keep gender roles in check—sometimes it is subtle, sometimes its not.
Studies on childhood development indicate that children go through several stages of categorizing things around them to make sense of the world. Gender schemas serve to make sense of "correct" and "incorrect" behavior for males and females. Little boys shouldn’t wear dresses, little girls shouldn’t have short hair and play with action figures. These schemas can be reinforced/taught by parents (“how silly! Boys don’t wear nail polish!”). Gender schemas can also be corrected by parents/caregivers (“of course girls can play with trucks!”). Studies on gender schemas and child development are endless
—some studies even suggest that parents can begin treating their FETUS is stereotypically gendered ways. But back to the “study” in question….
In terms of validity and not wanting to argue with a 95-year-old Jesuit scholar…why not? I could be totally off, but I was under the impression that studies had to be carried out in certain ways. A good study is testable—others can carry out a very similar study and find very similar results. Likewise, a good study is one that isn’t bias, doesn’t seek to find answers to support a certain cause, and isn’t lame. But the Vatican supports the findings, so we know it must be like 100% legit and valid.
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