Does Decision Making for Others Close the Gender Gap in Competition?

• 成果类型: Article; Early Access
• 署名作者: Ifcher, John; Zarghamee, Homa
• 署名单位: Santa Clara University; Columbia University
• 刊物名称: MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0025-1909
• DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.2023.4861
• 发表日期: 2023
• 关键词: preference for competition; willingness to compete; gender gap; decision making for others; DMfO

摘要

We examine whether the gender gap in competitiveness in stereotypically male tasks persists when the decision to compete is made by someone else. In a within-subject laboratory experiment, decision makers make competition entry decisions for both themselves and a randomly selected other. Although we replicate the standard gender gap in decisions for oneself, we do not find a gender gap when the decision to compete is made by someone else. This is driven by men being significantly more willing to enter themselves than others into competitions. Men's and women's willingness to enter others into competitions is statistically indistinguishable from women's willingness to enter themselves into competitions. Subgroup analyses reveal that competitive preferences are significantly greater for Asian than non-Asian subjects. Our results have implications for the effectiveness of nominations and mentorship to close gender gaps in labor market outcomes that are affected by competitive preferences.