The nature of inconsistencies in two measures of risk preferences in a sample of young African South Africans

In this paper, we attempt to unpack the nature of revealed inconsistencies in two measures of risk preferences for a sample of young African South Africans. The first measure is a self-reported propensity to take risk in general, and the second is a risk preference elicited through a hypothetical financial gamble. We find that the majority of individuals are inconsistent in their responses that provide these two measures of risk preferences with the majority of contradictions coming from individuals reporting themselves as risk seeking, when their revealed risk preferences from the hypothetical gamble show them to be risk averse. Our results suggest that such inconsistencies are more prevalent amongst males, and amongst females with greater mathematical ability.