Do you get told off a lot? More than other people? Even if you don’t necessarily consider yourself to be badly behaved?
Well, that used to be me! Until one day, while watching my son go to use his sister’s scooter while she wasn’t looking, I noticed his fatal mistake: He looked her square in the eye as he climbed on it and went to scoot away. Of course she was then duty bound to complain.
I suddenly realised this had been my mistake all these years. Getting eye contact with someone while you are doing something you’d rather they not see is a fundamental error. It’s the opposite of the distraction technique used by magicians. Eye contact seems to actively invite the viewer to get involved in what you’re doing.
Also, a contributing factor might be that people may be more inclined to berate a female than a male. Females, after all, should behave in a much more upstanding way. And, would presumably, be less likely to turn round and be aggressive in return. As much as these may sound like stereotypes, societal expectations will often play a subconscious role in how we behave.
All I know is that from now on, if you ask me to climb on a giant gold-looking bull in a casino restaurant at midnight, my excuse that I’ll get told off so couldn’t possibly, may no longer be valid!