Question
Why might women have better handwriting (more readable, neater) than men in general?
Answer
I am not sure I buy Eva Glasrud's inferences from the research she cites. I am skeptical that this anecdotal neatness observation is actually true.
I think context and personality are likely a far bigger predictor of neatness, and that most gender effects are likely to be disguised context effects. I am skeptical that gendered communication patterns from teachers is much of a factor.
Basic neat handwriting is not really a skill, unlike calligraphy. Once you get the motor control and command over the alphabet to write at all, you can write neatly if you take the time, though you may not win prizes. So there's not much of a learning curve. It's just a matter of writing slowly and mindfully, and not letting impatience make you sloppy.
In contexts where thought races ahead of both expression and desire for neatness, handwriting will be lousy. I bet both male and female doctors write illegible prescriptions. I bet impatient and/or smart people of both genders generally have poorer handwriting than patient and average but conscientious people. People with artistic tendencies and sensual personalities will likely write more beautifully.
As a kid, I had godawful handwriting. I had teachers even noting that on my report card comments and papers. I got away with it because my work was good. Generally, I was impatient and I wanted to get exams/homework done quickly, so since the work was mostly pretty easy for me, I'd rush through and handwriting would suffer. One time, just for the hell of it, I took my time on a geography test and wrote very slowly and neatly. My teacher was so shocked (she'd gotten used to making fun of me for my terrible handwriting) that she almost didn't believe it. She held the paper up and passed it around, if I recall, as an example of good handwriting.
As I recall, the kids in my peer group who had good handwriting were the earnest, conscientious types of both sexes. Smart, but more interested in being good/teacher's pets rather than being smart, and more interested in grades than what they were learning.
These days, I write far less than I type (and I can type far faster than I can write), and most of my writing is usually scrapbook brainstorming notes. On the rare occasion that I need to communicate on paper, I either type, or write slowly. But overall, my handwriting has gotten much worse. It doesn't help that most of us write with ballpoint pens/pencils on poor quality paper these days.
A good fountain pen and quality paper can make you want to write beautifully. One of these days, I'll buy those things and maybe start blogging by scanning in handwritten notes. When I bother to slow down and write as neatly and beautifully as I can, I notice my thoughts come out differently and suit different writing projects. If I wrote poetry, I'd use pen and paper, not a computer.
I did try learning calligraphy, but realized I just didn't have the talent for it.
I think context and personality are likely a far bigger predictor of neatness, and that most gender effects are likely to be disguised context effects. I am skeptical that gendered communication patterns from teachers is much of a factor.
Basic neat handwriting is not really a skill, unlike calligraphy. Once you get the motor control and command over the alphabet to write at all, you can write neatly if you take the time, though you may not win prizes. So there's not much of a learning curve. It's just a matter of writing slowly and mindfully, and not letting impatience make you sloppy.
In contexts where thought races ahead of both expression and desire for neatness, handwriting will be lousy. I bet both male and female doctors write illegible prescriptions. I bet impatient and/or smart people of both genders generally have poorer handwriting than patient and average but conscientious people. People with artistic tendencies and sensual personalities will likely write more beautifully.
As a kid, I had godawful handwriting. I had teachers even noting that on my report card comments and papers. I got away with it because my work was good. Generally, I was impatient and I wanted to get exams/homework done quickly, so since the work was mostly pretty easy for me, I'd rush through and handwriting would suffer. One time, just for the hell of it, I took my time on a geography test and wrote very slowly and neatly. My teacher was so shocked (she'd gotten used to making fun of me for my terrible handwriting) that she almost didn't believe it. She held the paper up and passed it around, if I recall, as an example of good handwriting.
As I recall, the kids in my peer group who had good handwriting were the earnest, conscientious types of both sexes. Smart, but more interested in being good/teacher's pets rather than being smart, and more interested in grades than what they were learning.
These days, I write far less than I type (and I can type far faster than I can write), and most of my writing is usually scrapbook brainstorming notes. On the rare occasion that I need to communicate on paper, I either type, or write slowly. But overall, my handwriting has gotten much worse. It doesn't help that most of us write with ballpoint pens/pencils on poor quality paper these days.
A good fountain pen and quality paper can make you want to write beautifully. One of these days, I'll buy those things and maybe start blogging by scanning in handwritten notes. When I bother to slow down and write as neatly and beautifully as I can, I notice my thoughts come out differently and suit different writing projects. If I wrote poetry, I'd use pen and paper, not a computer.
I did try learning calligraphy, but realized I just didn't have the talent for it.