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Gender and competition in adolescence: task matters

Dreber, Anna ; von Essen, Emma ; Ranehill, Eva

In: Experimental Economics, 2014, vol. 17, no. 1, p. 154-172

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    Titre
    • Gender and competition in adolescence: task matters
    Auteur
    • Dreber, Anna. Department of Economics, Stockholm School of Economics, P.O. Box 6501, 113 83, Stockholm, Sweden
    • von Essen, Emma. Department of Economics, Stockholm University, Universitetsvägen 10A, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
    • Ranehill, Eva. Department of Economics, University of Zürich, Blümlisalpstrasse 10, 8006, Zürich, Switzerland
    Type de document
    • Postprint
    Langue
    • Inglese
    Publié dans
    • Experimental Economics, 2014, vol. 17, no. 1, p. 154-172. Springer US; http://www.springer-ny.com
    Autre version électronique
    Identifiant OAI-PMH
    • oai:doc.rero.ch:325249
    Summary
    We look at gender differences among adolescents in Sweden in preferences for competition, altruism and risk. For competitiveness, we explore two different tasks that differ in associated stereotypes. We find no gender difference in competitiveness when comparing performance under competition to that without competition. We further find that boys and girls are equally likely to self-select into competition in a verbal task, but that boys are significantly more likely to choose to compete in a mathematical task. This gender gap diminishes and becomes non-significant when we control for actual performance, beliefs about relative performance, and risk preferences, or for beliefs only. Girls are also more altruistic and less risk taking than boys.