Men, Women Love Wedding—But Not for Same Reasons

Men might be from Mars and women from Venus, but they're all drawn to the royal wedding—for different reasons, of course. Female spectators tend to be enthralled by the romantic relationship while men are intrigued by the history of the British knot-tying, say psychologists. “The royal wedding is not as emotionally salient to men as it is to women,” says social psychologist Terri Orbuch. "Women are far more invested in the relationships and connections around weddings than men in general.”

Men tend to be drawn to the pageantry and symbolism. “I’m very keen on the symbolism of who sits where and the remarkable history of the buildings and all the ceremonies.” an ex-Marine explains to the Christian Science Monitor. The heart/head split between the sexes is created by powerful evolutionary and social forces, says Patrick Markey, director of Villanova University’s Interpersonal Research Laboratory. “Think about what we expose daughters to,” he adds. "We read them a fairy tale about a prince, or they hear a Disney story about Prince Charming or watch a movie about Cinderella.” (More Kate Middleton stories.)