Impulsiveness makes boys better at maths: Study

Impulsiveness of boys makes them better at solving arithmetic problems, while girls favour a slower approach, a new study has found.

Impulsiveness of boys makes them better at solving arithmetic problems, while girls favour a slower approach, a new study has found.

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Researchers from University of Missouri found that boys show preference for solving arithmetic problems by reciting an answer from memory, whereas girls were more likely to compute the answer by counting.

The approach by girls gave them an early advantage, but by the end of sixth grade boys had surpassed the girls.

"The observed difference in arithmetic accuracy between the sexes may arise from the willingness to risk being wrong by answering from memory before one is sure of the correct answer," said Drew Bailey from the university.

"Over time, the practice of remembering answers may have allowed boys to surpass girls in accuracy," Bailey said.