Are women really (not) more talkative than men? A registered report of binary gender similarities/differences in daily word use

Abstract

Women are widely assumed to be more talkative than men. Challenging this assumption, Mehl et al. (2007) provided empirical evidence that men and women do not differ significantly in their daily word use, speaking about 16,000 words per day (WPD) each. However, concerns were raised that their sample was too small to yield generalizable estimates and too age and context homogeneous to permit inferences beyond college students. This registered report replicated and extended the previous study of binary gender differences in daily word use to address these concerns. Across 2,197 participants (more than five-fold the original sample size), pooled over 22 samples (631,030 ambient audio recordings), men spoke on average 11,950 WPD and women 13,349 WPD, with very large individual differences (< 100 to > 120,000 WPD). The estimated gender difference (1,073 WPD; d = 0.13; 95% CrI [316, 1,824]) was about twice as large as in the original study. Smaller differences emerged among adolescent (513 WPD), emerging adult (841 WPD), and older adult (-788 WPD) participants, but a substantially larger difference emerged for participants in early and middle adulthood (3,275 WPD; d = 0.32). Despite the considerable sample size(s), all estimates carried large statistical uncertainty and, except for the gender difference in early and middle adulthood, provide inconclusive evidence regarding whether the two genders ultimately speak a practically equivalent number of WPD, based on the preregistered ± 1,000 WPD regions of practical equivalence criterion. Experienced stress had no meaningful effect on the gender difference, and no clear pattern emerged as to whether the gender difference is accentuated for subjectively rated compared with objectively observed talkativeness. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Figure 1. Schematic Representation of Sample Structure and Research Questions

Note: Schematic Representation of the Sample Structure and Research Questions; the data are pooled for 2,197 participants from 22 samples; in all studies, participants wore the EAR for multiple days, and it intermittently recorded ambient sound bites from their daily lives.

Figure 2. Distribution of Estimated Number of Words Spoken per Day

Note: The distributions of the estimated number of words spoken per day (WPD) for the 874 male and 1,323 female participants in the analyses. The dashed lines indicate the mean values for men and women. Note that the descriptive (rather than model-implied) means are depicted here. The tests of the RQs report the model-implied means. The values of 4 participants with WPD > 60,000 are omitted for optimal display purposes.

Figure 3. Estimated Gender Difference in Words Spoken per Day for all Participants and by Age Group

Note: (Within-sample) effects of gender on words spoken per day (WPD) for all participants (RQ1) and by age group (RQ2). The gray bars represent 95% credible intervals. The red-shaded area highlights the +/− 1,000 WPD ROPE. The dashed blue line marks the 546 WPD gender difference reported in Mehl et al. (2007).

Figure 4. Distribution of Estimated Number of Words spoken per Day in the Four Age Groups

Note: The distribution of the estimated number of words spoken per day for the male and 1,323 female participants in the four age groups. The dashed lines indicate the mean values for men and women. Note that the actual descriptive (rather than model-implied) means are depicted here. The statistical tests of the RQs report the model-implied means. Participants with WPD values > 60,000 are omitted for optimal display purposes.