Christmas Cards Carry Coded Messages

December 18, 2001 8:40 am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - You may think bland Christmas greetings are totally anonymous but the cards you send could give away more than you bargained for, according to new research.

A University of Leicester study showed that people are far more likely to choose to send cards designed by their own sex, even though they did not know who had made the cards.

The research also showed clear differences in the way men and women design business cards.

Professor Andrew Colman said his findings cast light on what makes up masculinity and femininity. "There's some suggestion that this is just sex roles people are brought up with, but there's an increasing belief in psychology that that doesn't tell the whole story," said Colman.

He also said the study had implications for the greeting card industry. They might be missing out because most of their designers are men, but most consumers are women -- who could be put off by male designs.

But he admitted that he didn't have much choice in the design of the cards he'd sent -- they were the only ones left in the shop.

-- Anonymous, December 19, 2001