Originally Posted by Guadalupe
I agree with you, Sandra! That's an excellent explanation and it's not regional (or, in any case, any such region extends to Argentina): ;). The generic term in Spanish is much more common (remember that we still* use the masculine plural as a generic reference).
*Many people are trying to convince us to avoid this use, but I think that it is a custom which will stay with us for many years. Imagine to use always the masculine and the feminine in order not to discriminate against women... I just don't agree since, in this way, the language would lose its main purpose --to communicate!