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Gender differences in asset information acquisition

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  • Taylor, Matthew P.
  • Wozniak, David

Abstract

Using an experiment, we test whether men acquire information about investments differently than women. When information is costly, we find that men purchase more information about investment choices than females and more information increases the likelihood of owning the risky asset. The information that subjects purchase suggests they are searching for reference points to simplify their decisions and reduce ambiguity. As a robustness check, we also examine behavior in a modified Holt and Laury risk preference task and find that men and women acquire information differently in that setting as well.

Suggested Citation

  • Taylor, Matthew P. & Wozniak, David, 2018. "Gender differences in asset information acquisition," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 20(C), pages 19-29.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:beexfi:v:20:y:2018:i:c:p:19-29
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbef.2018.03.006
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    Cited by:

    1. He, Liyu & He, Rong & Evans, Elaine, 2020. "Board influence on a firm’s long-term success: Australian evidence," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 27(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Information acquisition; Gender differences; Decision making; Risk;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior
    • D80 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - General
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • G40 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - General
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination

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