TY - JOUR
T1 - Gender Differences in Performance and Risk-taking among Children, Teenagers, and College Students
T2 - Evidence from Jeopardy!
AU - Jetter, Michael
AU - Walker, Jay K.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - Studying Jeopardy! contestants in the US, we explore whether and when gender differences in performance in competitive settings and risk-taking emerge with age and by opponents' gender. We identify no gender differences in winning episodes, responding, or responding correctly to clues. Male teenagers (but not children) wager substantially more than female teenagers, leading to the emergence of the gender gap, equivalent to a 7.3 percentage point difference. This gap persists for college students. Finally, male teenagers and college students wager substantially less when competing against females, whereas the gender of opponents does not influence the behavior of young female contestants.
AB - Studying Jeopardy! contestants in the US, we explore whether and when gender differences in performance in competitive settings and risk-taking emerge with age and by opponents' gender. We identify no gender differences in winning episodes, responding, or responding correctly to clues. Male teenagers (but not children) wager substantially more than female teenagers, leading to the emergence of the gender gap, equivalent to a 7.3 percentage point difference. This gap persists for college students. Finally, male teenagers and college students wager substantially less when competing against females, whereas the gender of opponents does not influence the behavior of young female contestants.
KW - gender and competition
KW - gender and risk taking
KW - gender norms
KW - gender of opponents
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85083255672&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1515/bejeap-2019-0179
DO - 10.1515/bejeap-2019-0179
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85083255672
VL - 20
JO - BE Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy
JF - BE Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy
SN - 1538-0629
IS - 2
M1 - 20190179
ER -
