Classic financial agency theory recommends compensation through stock options rather than shares to counteract excessive risk aversion in agents. In a setting where any kind of risk taking is suboptimal for shareholders, we show that excessive risk taking may occur for one of two reasons: risk...

We examine the temporal stability of risk preference measures obtained by different elicitation methods in a controlled laboratory experiment at two distinct times. Our results indicate remarkable temporal stability of risk measures at the aggregated level and temporal instability at the...

This article addresses the reactions of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) economies to external shocks. Because it was conceived as a political alliance, the UNASUR is likely to be a promising integration project. Thus, assessing the union from an economic perspective is essential....

Single-sex classes within coeducational environments are likely to modify students’ risk-taking attitudes in economically important ways. To test this, we designed a controlled experiment using first year college students who made choices over real-stakes lotteries at two distinct dates....

We explore gender differences in preferences for competition and risk among children aged 9–12 in Colombia and Sweden, two countries differing in gender equality according to macro indices. We include four types of tasks that vary in gender stereotyping when looking at competitiveness:...

We analyze the prediction of risk preferences of others using an artefactual field experiment with financial professionals and students. For their prediction, the subjects receive information on multiple demographic characteristics and a self-assessment of risk taking of the target. When...

We study the influence of risk and time preferences on trust and trustworthiness by conducting a field experiment in Vietnamese villages and by estimating the parameters of the Cumulative Prospect Theory and of quasi-hyperbolic time preferences. We find that while probability sensitivity or risk...

We study the relation between gender and stock holdings in Finland, a particularly gender equal country. We show that it is crucial to control for risk aversion using a measure of subjective risk-taking, rather than measures derived from abstract gambles. Controls related to financial knowledge...

We examine whether competitiveness in women is influenced by biological factors. Female participants in a laboratory experiment solve a simple arithmetics task first under a piece rate and then under a competitive tournament scheme. Participants can then choose which compensation scheme to apply...

Economists and psychologists have developed a variety of experimental methodologies to elicit and assess individual risk attitudes. Choosing which to utilize, however, is largely dependent on the question one wants to answer, as well as the characteristics of the sample population. The goal of...