Monday, April 20, 2009

Boys vs. Girls

Are boys or girls harder to raise?

According to our most recent poll, it's practically a draw. Six readers said that boys are harder to raise than girls, while seven said, no, boys are not more difficult to raise.

The question of which sex is harder to raise has been debated for centuries. Millennia, probably.

Frankly, it's a question I'm not qualified to answer. With four boys, I have absolutely, positively no experience raising girls.

The answer, of course, is more complex than "boys" or "girls." The answer depends on the personality and preferences of the parent and the personality and age of the child. If you're a highly verbal, very emotional mother, you may find raising a talkative, emotional daughter a natural fit, while you'd be lost with a physically-oriented boy of few words. Or you might find yourself locked in a battle of wills with a daughter who is all too much like you and crave the peace of a silent, brooding son.

According to my completely unscientific Internet research, though, boys are indeed easier to raise. For an extremetly unscientific but very humorous look at the matter, click here.

Of course, if you prefer real facts, you might be interested in these articles at Parents and CNN. In general, boys are aggressive, physical, less prone to communication and more difficult to discipline. They also have a harder time in school.

Odds are, you already knew that. ;)

So what's been your experience? Are boys or girls harder to raise?

4 comments:

  1. Like you, I have absolutely no experience raising girls, and am therefore not qualified to answer this question:)!!

    "In general, boys are aggressive, physical, less prone to communication and more difficult to discipline. They also have a harder time in school." Based on this quote, I would conclude that boys are more difficult to educate in a restrictive environment (like a traditional school) than they are to raise! Perhaps, if the above mentioned traits were embraced and accepted rather than stiffled, they would be significantly easier to raise.

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  2. You know, as I read your posts, I have to chuckle because most of the time, my ds is not like what you comment about, BUT my oldest 12dd IS. My almost 16yr ds has always been quiet and reserved and it's just been the last 2 yrs maybe that he's come out of his shell. My dd is very active and does most of the things you post about boys doing. But you must understand, that my family is very odd in that everytime someone suggests I try something with my kids, I have to do the opposite. For example, if your baby is crying, take them for a ride. If I did that with my oldest, he would have screamed even louder.

    I'm realizing now that I'm off topic a bit. But I just had to comment on how odd my family is. :)

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  3. Karie brings up a great point -- there's a WIDE range of normal. Need to do more posts about that, I think.

    Jenny

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  4. Andrea,
    I agree 100%. Check today's post for more.

    Jenny

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