# Just out of curiosity - groups of femals flocking to the bathroom **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 28, 2000, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380 "2000-04-28T22:01:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Gremmie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/96bed5/32.png) [@Gremmie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gremmie)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2000, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/1 "2000-04-28T22:01:00Z")
I am female, but I’m wondering why the hell we go to the bathroom in groups…it sounds like an odd question…like i have too much time on my hands, but I really wanna know. It’s just mainly habit for me, to go with my friends and stand there waiting for them. But is there any real reason? Whot he hell started this idea anyways?? _greemie_ * * * ~_~gremmie~_~ _“Just remember what John and Paul said.”_ “The Apostels?” _“No, the Beatles! ‘All ya need is love.’”_ -from the motion picture “Michael” ---
**Author:** ![sharkboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@sharkboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sharkboy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/2 "2000-04-29T12:43:02Z")
You can’t gossip on your own? ---
**Author:** ![ultress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/7c8e57/32.png) [@ultress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultress)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/3 "2000-04-29T12:47:26Z")
It’s a girl thing. We like to strut our stuff and it looks much better if you are with someone they can compare you to. ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/4 "2000-04-29T13:25:45Z")
I think it’s a herd instinct. If you stick together in a clump you’ll be safer from, say, leopard attacks, than you would be alone. ---
**Author:** ![VaHermit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ed655f/32.png) [@VaHermit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VaHermit)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/5 "2000-04-29T19:39:55Z")
Don’t know why females do it, but I know that it is a sacred ritual. I remember once in a bar with a group of friends, after the ladies had returned en-masse from their pilgrimage. I stood up and (cleverly, I thought) said in my sweetest voice, “I need to go tinkle now, you guys wanna come hold my hand”. WRONG…never again. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/6 "2000-04-29T20:19:07Z")
I always thought you were talking about your dates. ---
**Author:** ![Geobabe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/geobabe/32/3908_2.png) [@Geobabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geobabe)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2000, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/7 "2000-04-29T20:53:50Z")
It gives us a chance to talk about the guys. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/8 "2000-04-30T00:41:49Z")
I guess this just proves that _nobody_ understands women… ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/9 "2000-04-30T01:21:52Z")
One theory my mom came up with was that it dated back to the age of outhouses. When you had to go outside and walk a hundred yards or so to use the bathroom, it was safer to travel in a group. But, it’s grown into just a yakkin’ thing. Why women like talking to one another in the bathroom, I dunno. The acoustics in most bathrooms are terrible. Then again, women’s bathrooms tend to be a bit nicer than the stark white tile us fellas are used to; maybe the carpeting, art prints, couches, and vases of flowers deaded the echos. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/10 "2000-04-30T03:32:38Z")
Way I heard it, it dates back to the days when etiquette required gentlemen to stand up whenever a lady left or entered a room, or got up from/sat down at a table. It was a lot more convenient if women did their relocating _en masse_ as much as possible, so the guys wouldn’t be bobbing up and down like jack-in-the-boxes as individual women came in, went out, came in, went out… (Ever read a scene in a pre-1940 novel where the hostess at a dinner party does the eye-contact thing with the female guests so they all get up at the same time to “leave the men to their port”?) The males have abandoned their part of the custom but the females have (at least partly) retained theirs. I’d be interested in seeing if there’s any documentary evidence for that explanation; I’ll check some old etiquette books at home and report back if I find anything. Kimstu ---
**Author:** ![Alphagene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Alphagene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alphagene)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/11 "2000-04-30T03:44:38Z")
Corn in poo, cows shooting milk out of their noses and now chicks going to the bathroom in groups. Did a large group of mediocre observational comedians just register _en masse_? ---
**Author:** ![lswote](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lswote/32/5737_2.png) [@lswote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lswote)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/12 "2000-04-30T03:49:07Z")
Maybe it really isn’t a girl issue. Maybe the question is why don’t men go to the bathroom in groups? I can say we men are all a little ansy about being at the urinals together. We are uncomfortable about standing so close together, it is sort of a personal space issue. Also standing at a urinal is sort of like being in an elevator, everyone keeps their eyes to themselves and since looking at the wall is pretty boring you also want to get the business over quickly for that reason. And then because we don’t have any makeup to freshen or anything like that we wash and dry our hands and maybe give our hair a quick comb, straighten our ties and there just is nothing left to do so we leave. So there is no sense of community that I gather may occur in womens restrooms and therefore there is no point of going in together in groups. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/13 "2000-04-30T03:57:31Z")
Why those long urinals that can accomodate as many guys who can squeeze in front of it with the mirror above it? There was one at a drive in. Was a supposed to check for pick pockets or what? ---
**Author:** ![lswote](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lswote/32/5737_2.png) [@lswote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lswote)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/14 "2000-04-30T04:08:13Z")
For one thing the mirror makes the room seem more spaceous. Standing in front of a blank wall has sort of a claustrophic effect. That isn’t quite the right term for it but I would equate standing at a urinal sort of like standing in a corner when you were punished as a kid. The mirrors give you more of a sense of space and the experience isn’t quite as mundane. And maybe also it gives you a chance to notice your hair needs combing or you have ketchup on your chin that you might not notice if you hurried to the sink to wash your hands and didn’t really look up in the mirror. ---
**Author:** ![single\_files](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8e7dd6/32.png) [@single\_files](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/single_files)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/15 "2000-04-30T13:45:11Z")
Maybe this starts in childhood, where little girls are probably escorted to the bathroom long after the age when little boys go on their own. I was coming out of a stall in a ladie’s room last week, when a man walked right in with his little girl. He didn’t say anything…just looked a little uncomfortable. It was awkward, but in thinking about it…what was his other choice? Take the little girl into the men’s bathroom with the urinal situation? Send her in alone? (She might have been 3) How do single fathers of little girls handle this? I probably should have started a new thread for this, but it does make me curious. ---
**Author:** ![MissMonica7](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@MissMonica7](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissMonica7)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2000, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/16 "2000-04-30T23:55:46Z")
My father watched my little sister and me when we were young since my mother worked 4-12pm every day since I was born til I was about 6 or so. So he would take us to the mall and out to eat after school. I remember being in the mall with him and having to go to the bathroom, and he just sent us in alone. Being that young, of course I was scared. But what else was he supposed to do, short of asking some random female walking towards the bathroom to take us in there?? Ya gotta give my dad some credit though, for being me and my sister’s primary caregiver for those very early years… And as for females going in groups, I am guilty of this as well, and cannot explain it. If I’m in a bar or club, I like to have company so I don’t have to worry about finding my friends when I come out of there. ---
**Author:** ![Ptahlis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a8b319/32.png) [@Ptahlis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ptahlis)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2000, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/17 "2000-05-01T15:32:35Z")
My question is not why they do it, but how do you refer to a mass of females en route to the powder room? You know, a pride of lions, a murder of crows, school of fish, etc. Since the phenomenon is seemingly ubiquitous, we need a name for it. A bladder of? A gossip? A cosmetic? ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2000, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/18 "2000-05-01T15:36:03Z")
Women are more social than men. They talk about stuff that can be personal and emotional and the men don’t understand. Or, they talk about the men and how well the **relationships** are working out. Men don’t talk about that stuff. Also, women’s hygeinic needs are more complicated than men’s: hairspray, make up, tampons, etc… They help each other out. The only reason for men to conspire together is for off-color jokes, bragging about getting laid, arranging how they’re going to get their date alone, and maybe to see if some one has a spare condom. And they do that when the women leave to go to the bathroom. ## Peace. _Did you ever notice that women tend to have longer hair than men? What’s up with that?_ ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2000, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-out-of-curiosity-groups-of-femals-flocking-to-the-bathroom/11380/19 "2000-05-07T03:15:00Z")
I always thought that since it takes more time for a woman to urinate than a man due to having to find a stall, undo pants, etc, the line didn’t move as fast and tended to bunch up.