Are men from Mars and women from Venus?

In all types of research it has become common to accept that men and women have different lifeworlds. Outside the research world this conviction really gathered momentum with the publication in 1992 of ‘Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus’, written by the American author and relationship counselor John Gray. The book and its central idea have had a major impact on popular culture. We accept the existence of a gender difference that makes it both necessary and acceptable from time to time to separate girls from boys during their school years to optimize their learning. In addition, package holidays, hotels, and courses adjusted to a specific gender are gaining popularity. This gender segregation is generally regarded as common sense, but has it come under sufficient critical scrutiny? In empirical research literature, men and women are commonly separated into specific gender groups, and this may be well-founded as there are clearly biological differences. However, this tendency seems to have entered qualitative research and this may conflict with ontological and epistemological beliefs. A brief survey of some papers containing qualitative studies shows that while some researchers provide a rationale for dividing groups along gender lines, others do not appear to question or provide justification for this in their research. In most cases, the division is made with reference to earlier studies using gender division, for example: ‘‘Since allergy to gluten has only been studied among women so far, this study provides insight into men’s experiences of this life condition’’. Attempting to establish the necessary niche in the existing body of knowledge, the researcher fails to question whether a gender division is suitable in this particular study. The question is whether there is a clear difference in the lifeworlds of men and women or if we tend to transfer the assumption of gender diversity from our daily life into the research world. If we as qualitative researchers want to separate men and women in our studies, it is crucial that we make an effort to identify sources that justify this division. If not, I am afraid we risk contaminating qualitative studies with ideas that are merely cultural rather than theoretical. In other words: If there are any plausible reasons that men may experience gluten allergy differently from women, they have to be outlined. If this is not possible, I think we should start to give due consideration to potential differences but at the same time go beyond them and avoid automatic dichotomies sneaking into our qualitative studies.