Does knowledge of finance mitigate the gender difference in financial risk-aversion?

Ann Marie Hibbert, Edward R. Lawrence and Arun Prakash

Global Finance Journal, 2013, vol. 24, issue 2, 140-152

Abstract: We investigate the gender difference in financial risk aversion using a survey of finance professors from universities across the United States. We compare their actual portfolio allocations to that of respondents in the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF). We find that among highly educated individuals, women are significantly more risk averse than men. However, we find that when men and women have both attained a high level of financial education, they are equally likely to invest a significant portion of their portfolio in risky assets, suggesting that financial education mitigates the gender difference in financial risk aversion.

Keywords: Risk aversion; Gender bias; Behavioral finance; Financial education (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D81 G11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (22)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:glofin:v:24:y:2013:i:2:p:140-152

DOI: 10.1016/j.gfj.2013.07.002

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