X appeal makes women socially superior

WE'VE all known it for years, but now a remarkable but unromantic study of differences between the sexes makes it official. Men and women are different, not only physically but mentally.

The old nature nurture bogy is back to haunt us again, but feminists can take heart that the latest research shows that women are socially superior, thanks to their genetic makeup.

The findings published yesterday by British researchers prompted film director Michael Winner to declare: "That women are cleverer than me is something I've been saying for years. Women are far more pleasant, far more balanced and far more together. Look at any pub and see that men are blustering and obnoxious."

The explanation given by scientists is that they have found evidence of a gene governing social behaviour which "behaves" differently in men and women. The findings, published today, may also indicate why women seem more prone to depression while more alcoholics are male.

It is believed women are genetically programmed to be more articulate and socially adept. Because of their genes, men are also said to be more vulnerable to disorders affecting language and social behaviour.

The key to why women possess better social skills than men is thought to be encoded in a gene on the X chromosome. In almost all cases, women inherit two X chromosomes, one from their mother and one from their father. Men on the other hand have just one X chromosome, which is always inherited from their mother, and a Y chromosome.

Research at the Institute of Child Health in London suggests the "social skills" gene on the X chromosome is switched off whenever it is derived from the mother. Thus the single X chromosome men inherit has a silenced version of the gene that promotes good communication and social behaviour. Only women can inherit the active gene, ironically from their fathers.

The discovery was made after studying women with Turner's syndrome. While these women, who are wholly or partially missing one of the two female chromosomes, are of normal intelligence, their social adjustment is often impaired. Patients with an X chromosome inherited from their fathers had superior verbal and social skills, than those with a maternal chromosome.

The article's authors, Dr Peter McGuffin and Dr Jane Scourfield of the University of Wales College of Medicine, said: "Throughout most of the second half of this century, with the increasing emphasis on sexual equality, there has been a tendency to play down the possible role of biology in accounting for psychological differences between men and women. Now ... we have evidence ... challenging the prevailing belief that gender differences are largely culturally determined."