The Impact of Gender and Group Identity on Willingness to Compete

Gender gaps in willingness to compete are widely recognized as a key factor contributing to disparities in labor market outcomes. While much attention has been paid to gender identity, individuals also belong to social groups that influence how they engage in competitive environments. The decision to compete often occurs within complex identity contexts, yet the combined effect of gender and group identity on competitive behavior remains less well understood. This study investigates how group identity shapes tournament entry decisions in mixed-gender environments. We conducted a laboratory experiment in which participants were randomly assigned to minimal groups and then paired with an opposite-gender partner. They were informed that their opponent was either from the same group (ingroup), a different group (outgroup), or received no group information (control). Participants completed a real-effort task and then chose between non-competitive and competitive payment schemes. The results showed that participants—particularly men—were less likely to choose the competitive option when facing an ingroup opponent. In contrast, women were slightly more likely to compete against outgroup opponents. While previous research has suggested that men may be more willing to compete to elevate their social status within a group, our findings reveal the opposite pattern when the ingroup opponent is female. These findings suggest that the interaction between gender and group identity can produce nuanced, non-additive effects on competitive behavior.