Women are more dangerous through words: gossip among students from the Autonomous University of Chapingo, in México

Authors

  • Verónica Vázquez-García
  • María Eugenia Chávez-Arellano

Abstract

This article describes gossip perceptions in young students at the
second year of the high school in the Autonomous University of
Chapingo (UACh) in México. The analysis centers around three
subject areas related to gossip: its association with women, its
social function, and alternatives in face of its impact on daily life.
The results are: first, although prevails the stereotype of gossipy
women, there is a recognition that men also gossip, albeit in a
more discrete manner; second, the social function of gossip at the
UACh can be of three kinds: the one that strengthens bonds;that
which promotes personal interests; or the one that serves both
purposes, depending on the context where it is spread and its
content; third, men and women agree that gossip has a negative
impact on people’s lives, but women declare having been victims
in larger percentages. Some of them consider that gossip is
inevitable, while others foresee two alternatives to diminish its
harm: educating people; the personal option of ignoring it, by
changing behavior to avoid being its victim or confronting the
person who spreads it.

Published

2006-06-06

How to Cite

Vázquez-García, V., & Chávez-Arellano, M. E. (2006). Women are more dangerous through words: gossip among students from the Autonomous University of Chapingo, in México. Agricultura, Sociedad Y Desarrollo, 3(2), 107–137. Retrieved from https://www.revista-asyd.org/index.php/asyd/article/view/1052

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