Cats Bond Deeply With Women & Manipulate Men, Research Shows
larisa Stefanjuk | Shutterstock It seems cats may prefer to be around women rather than men, at least according to research led by a team from Ankara University in Turkey. Their findings were based on video footage captured by 31 cat owners. Each participant recorded the reactions of their cat as they returned home, with clear instructions to act as normally as possible.
From the videos, cats demonstrated different behaviors when interacting with their male owners versus female owners. And the findings may very well have to do with the way both genders interact with their feline companions.
Research shows cats bond deeply with women and manipulate men.
According to the study, male cat owners produced an average of 4.3 vocalizations (meows, purrs, or chirps) during the first 100 seconds of entering the room, compared to an average of 1.8 for female owners. "Our results showed that cats vocalized more frequently toward male caregivers, while no other demographic factor had a discernible effect on the frequency or duration of greetings," researchers explained in their published paper.
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Not only did researchers look at how vocal cats were with their owners, but they also examined yawning (often a sign of cat stress) and food-related behaviors (including heading to their food bowl). The vocalization seemed to be the only thing that changed regarding their owners. It's possible that this is because men typically tend to act more aloof when it comes to giving their pets attention.
Women tend to be better at assessing their cat's emotions.
Other studies have found that women are much better at giving their cats more attention, understanding their cats' emotions, and are more likely to mimic their cats' vocalization, too. Whereas for men, the same cannot be said. Considering they tend to give affection more sparingly than women, it's no wonder that the dynamic is different.
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"It is therefore possible that male caregivers require more explicit vocalizations to notice and respond to the needs of their cats, which in turn reinforces cats' tendency to use more directed and frequent vocal behavior to attract their attention," researchers continued in their published paper.
Interestingly enough, more men than women own cats.
According to the Mars Global Pet Parent Study, which surveyed over 20,000 pet parents (dog and cat owners) across 20 countries, cat ownership is more common than dog ownership globally, with more men (52% male versus 48% female) being cat owners.
While cats tend to manipulate their male owners more than their female owners, it seems to be less about preference and has more to do with communication. If you're more in tune with your cat, then they'll reciprocate that energy. So, if you're a male cat owner and you're wondering why your furry buddy suddenly turns into a chatterbox the moment you walk through the door, it might just be their way of making sure that you're giving them the attention they deserve.
Because let's be honest, cats are definitely smart enough to know exactly what methods to use to get what they want. They are tuned into your habits and will not hesitate to let you know if something just isn't meeting their needs.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor's degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
