A new study has established that women’s brains are better at multitasking compared to men’s. Although it is evident that men and women use their brains differently this recent research indicates that women are more likely to switch quickly between tasks compared to men. Interestingly when it comes to coping with juggling priorities both genders struggle but men suffer more.

The study establishes differences between men and women in multitasking 

The study published in The Royal Society examined 83 healthy participants between 18 and 80 years who were asked to walk on a treadmill. The participants were asked to complete a language test while they were walking with infrared cameras employed to watch body movement to establish a distinction in the way the women and men swung arms as they attempted the language test. 

In an interview with AFP, study co-author and neuroscientist Tim Killeen said that when they added the language test the symmetry broke down in men and women over 60 years. He explained that there was a reduction in the right arm swing with the left arm continuing with the swing normally. 

Left brain controls language and right-hand movement 

Usually, it is the left side of the brain that controls the right arm and it is the language center of the brain and this is where the connection comes in. The researchers indicated that when it comes to the verbal test, men and older women seemed to overwhelm the left part of the brain and thus resulted in reduced right arm swing. 

However, this study didn’t examine whether the inability to multitask is applicable to other activities but it is possible it could apply. Most importantly previous studies have made similar claims that men tend to be less organized compared to men when it comes to switching tasks. Equally, it could be possible that the ability for one to multitask could vary depending on the task they are performing. There is still a need for more research to validate the findings of the differences in multitasking between genders.