A study was conducted in the early 1980s involving several hundred American men and women over a thirty day period. This study determined that 45 percent of men and a mere six percent of women reported no emotional tears during that month of the study. Of those who did cry, the frequency of crying among the women was five times that of men, with the women crying a little more than once per week and the men, about once per month. The average length of any given cry was six minutes.
Precipitating factors for crying were determined to be primarily interpersonal conflict and entertainment; peak crying hours took place between 7 and 10 p.m.-- prime television watching and movie-going time. The study's researchers speculated that suppressing tears could lead to increased risk of stress-related illnesses, since one purpose of a tear is to expel stress-induced toxins.
This talk is free, however, Yale Union suggests a $5 donation fee at the door.
Weird Worlds: Experiments in Animation
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