Why don't men know how to shop?

• Position: Gift-Giving - Brief Article

With a few mall-wandering days left until Christmas and Hanukkah, last-minute shoppers will be crowding stores in bewilderment, looking for a gift--any gift--that pleases their mate. For most men, notes counseling psychologist Gordon Hart, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pa., who specializes in relationships, shopping can be an overwhelming, confusing process. "Men are not cultured in the shopping-for-others motif. Shopping is time-consuming and frustrating to them. They just want to go to the store, get an item, and walk out. But shopping is not an easy, efficient process."

Men need to resist their natural urge to buy practical things, he says. "Men are pretty concrete and very utilitarian. They have a tendency to buy more...