Gender Differences in Risk Behaviour: Does Nurture Matter?

Abstract

It is well known that women are underrepresented in high-paying jobs and in high-level occupations.Recent work in experimental economics has examined to what degree this under-representation may be due to innate differences between men and women.For example, gender differences in risk aversion, feedback preferences or fondness for competition may help to explain some of the observed gender disparities.If the majority of remuneration in high-paying jobs is tied to bonuses based on a company's performance, then, if men are less risk-averse than women, women may choose not to take high-paying jobs because of the uncertainty.Differences in risk attitudes may even affect individual choices about seeking performance feedback or entering a competitive environment.

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