'Scientific proof' that women can't park?

Researchers have found that men are officially better at parking cars than women. Is this another battle won in the war of the sexes?

It's official — men are better than women at parking cars. After testing 65 volunteers, a team of German researchers is offering "scientific proof" to back the age-old stereotype that men are better at parking than women. Not only did the women tested take up to 20 seconds longer to park an Audi A6 than the men, they were also less likely to center the vehicle in the space. Have men now officially won this battle in the war of the sexes?

Use this info carefully, guys: Men everywhere should take “silent pride” in this scientific finding rather than rub it in their wives' and girlfriends' faces, advises Jeremy Taylor at Asylum.com. If you value your relationship, “save that 'I told you so' for another day” — say, "when scientists prove we're actually smarter.”

"Men are officially superior to women at parking cars"

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Sounds bogus: Is a "65 random test subjects" really a "big enough sample" to "definitively" prove this "macho male ego BS"?, asks Chris Shunk at Autoblog. Any man eager to boast about his superiority as parker would do well to listen to Dr. Claudia Wolf, the female scientist who led the study: "It is not as if there was a massive failing by women. It is just about parking."

"UK study suggests that women don't park as well as men"

OK, men can park better — so what? It's hard to see the point of this study, says feminist author Germaine Greer, quoted in the Mail on Sunday. Men may have a "very insignificant advantage in spatial awareness," but does that mean we should prohibit women from parking? "Of course not." This "extreme waste of resources" was probably just an attempt to "provoke" feminists.

"Men ARE better than women at parking"

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us