Kbbreview's managing editor Andrew Davies on whether there is still a battle of the sexes...

Who actually makes the decisions when it comes to buying a kitchen, bedroom or bathroom? Him or her?

The stereotype and cliche makes an assumption that if a co-habiting couple are buying a kitchen, bedroom or bathroom then she will have the ultimate say. This is a very broad statement of course but is it still a functioning rule of thumb? And could the growing role of technology in the products themselves and their interaction with other devices be a driver that will change that cliche?

Not really, according a to a new survey, because of another simple sterotype - men like gadgets and women don't and men don't see anything in the kitchen as interesting enough to bother with even if it's all digital.

If these figures are true, men are impressed by gadgets for the sake of it rather than thinking too much about how useful they will be, and that means iPads and X-Boxes will always be much sexier than appliances.

The survey, from appliance manufacturer Amica, appeared in my inbox this week with this as the opening gambit:

"Men are baffled by washing machines while women can't get their heads around smart phones, research revealed this month."

The study of 2,000 adults found that men are happy using a myriad of gizmos and flipping between them seamlessly but certain gadgets leave them puzzled - the ones in the kitchen.
 
A quarter of men admitted they had no idea how to use their washing machine and a similar number were clueless when it came to using the oven. Women on the other hand were more likely to struggle with turning off their kids' games console and getting their smartphone or mp3 player to work.

Simon Freear from Amica UK, summed up the dilemma for anyone in kitchens and bathrooms:
 
"This research supports our findings in store‚ women have no problem navigating their way around appliances in the kitchen but men seem to be far more interested in hand held gadgetry and as a result master new technology with excitement and ease. Kitchen appliances are viewed as more mundane and as a manufacturer we are hoping to help change this view."

The study found that men struggle to get to grips with nine household gadgets or appliances including the tumble dryer, dishwasher, iron, oven, vacuum, hob and food mixer.
 
Women find a total of 14 gadgets hard-going including the laptop or PC, printer, Sky + and digital cameras. They also struggle to overcome problems with the video camera.

This isn't about relative intelligence or understanding, in my opinion, its about relative levels of interest. Women, in this broad clichéd context, don't "struggle" with technology PCs and Playstations, they just don't find them interesting enough to find out more.

Likewise, men feel the same way about washing machines and ovens - and trying to make those products more like an iPad by using interactive Apple-style interface screens on them isn't really going to help if we follow these survey results through.

So how does this translate to the KBB showroom? How does the dynamic work when a couple walk in? Who makes the decisions and what bores or interests each of them?

And if it's true that women predominantly make the decisions, why are so many retailers, salesmen, designers, marketeers and fitters men?

This survey suggests that we still live in a country where women dominate the kitchen, and probably bathroom, and men the living room. Is that your experience when they come in to choose their new projects? And if so, how do you tailor your showroom and sales technique to the female decision maker?

Or is this all simply a sexist throwback to a bygone time?