Gender Differences In Preferences Research Articles

The gender gap in the wage sensitivity of job transitions: a decomposition analysis

Previous research shows that female workers are less sensitive to wages in their decision to switch jobs than male workers, and that this could explain a substantial part of the gender wage gap. This paper studies to what extent gender differences in preferences and personality traits explain the gender gap in the wage-elasticity of job-to-job transitions in the labor market. Using a novel decomposition approach in the context of mediated moderation and using German Socio-Economic Panel Survey (G-SOEP) data for the period 2005–2019, we find that gender differences in risk preferences, patience, trust, reciprocity, altruism, conscientiousness, ambition and self-esteem explain about 25% of the gender gap in wage-elasticities of job separations. A detailed decomposition suggests that risk preferences, trust and ambition contribute most to this gender gap in wage-elasticity.

Gender differences in preferences for mental health apps in the general population – a choice-based conjoint analysis from Germany

BackgroundMen and women differ in the mental health issues they typically face. This study aims to describe gender differences in preferences for mental health treatment options and specifically tries to identify participants who prefer AI-based therapy over traditional face-to-face therapy.MethodA nationally representative sample of 2,108 participants (53% female) aged 18 to 74 years completed a choice-based conjoint analysis (CBCA). Within the CBCA, participants evaluated twenty choice sets, each describing three treatment variants in terms of provider, content, costs, and waiting time.ResultsCosts (relative importance [RI] = 55%) emerged as the most critical factor when choosing between treatment options, followed by provider (RI = 31%), content (RI = 10%), and waiting time (RI = 4%). Small yet statistically significant differences were observed between women and men. Women placed greater importance on the provider, while men placed greater importance on cost and waiting time. Age and previous experience with psychotherapy and with mental health apps were systematically related to individual preferences but did not alter gender effects. Only a minority (approximately 8%) of participants preferred AI-based treatment to traditional therapy.ConclusionsOverall, affordable mental health treatments performed by human therapists are consistently favored by both men and women. AI-driven mental health apps should align with user preferences to address psychologist shortages. However, it is uncertain whether they alone can meet the rising demand, highlighting the need for alternative solutions.

Exploring the influence of gender variation on the use of language learning apps in foreign language skill improvement

Gender variation emerges as one of the relevant concepts in the domain of language education because it facilitates understanding individuals’ approaches to language learning, including the adoption and use of technology. The current study, with a focus on language learning technology, aims to explore how gender variation influences learners’ use of language learning apps to improve their language skills. To achieve the study’s objective, we adopted a mixed research methodology. We purposefully selected one hundred and forty-three (146) foreign language students for this research. Using mixed methods, all the students participated in the quantitative survey, while only four students participated in the qualitative part of the research. The participants’ responses to the first research question revealed that gender variation is evident in some aspects but less so in others. There was a clear gender difference in preference and confidence in the use of language learning apps (LLAs). In terms of preference, the male respondents (mean = 4.1) show that they have a stronger preference for gaming LLAs than collaborative and communication LLAs. The females also show interest in using gaming LLAs, but with a relatively low mean score (mean = 2.9), indicating that the females may be consistent in their preference for collaboration and communication. The male students’ mean score (4.6) in regard to the fifth survey item demonstrated strong confidence in using LLAs compared to their female counterparts (mean = 4.4). While there was moderate gender variation in regards to app navigation and the type of language skill improved using LLAs, gender variation is absent in terms of frequency in the use of LLAs among the respondents (both genders).

Gender and Preferences for Performance Feedback

Across multiple studies, we investigate whether there are gender differences in preferences for receiving performance feedback. We vary many features of the feedback context: whether the performance task is a cognitive test or a mock interview, the feedback is objective or subjective, and it is possible for the provider of the feedback to discriminate on the basis of gender. Consistent with past work, we find that women are less optimistic about their performance than men and that, on average, more optimistic individuals have greater demand for feedback. Results like these have been hypothesized in the literature to imply that women will shy away from performance feedback more so than men. And, when we survey participants from a similar population, they also anticipate that women will demand feedback at lower rates than men. Yet, across our two incentivized studies, we find that women are no less eager to receive performance feedback than men. Understanding whether and how these results might generalize to broader contexts, particularly those with more social factors, is an important question for future work. This paper was accepted by Dorothea Kubler, behavioral economics and decision analysis. Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.02482 .

Gender Differences in Preferences for Meaning at Work

Scholars have examined whether preferences for job characteristics help explain why men and women sort into different occupations but have overlooked preferences for meaning at work. We first document gender differences in preferences for meaning in a large-scale survey covering individuals in 47 countries. We then conduct a choice-based conjoint analysis of a cohort of MBA students at a leading business school to study gender differences in preferences for meaning compared to other job attributes. We show that gender differences in preferences for meaning at work are widespread and partly explain gender differences in behavioral outcomes, including industry of work. (JEL D91, I23, J16, J24, J28)

Explanations for Gender Differences in Preferences for Submissive Sexual Fantasies.

Women have a stronger preference for sexualsubmission than men do. In the current studies, we investigated gender differences in fantasies about sexual submission. Replicating previous research, in twostudies we found that women expressed a stronger affinityfor fantasies about sexual submission than men did. However,controlling for age and several sociocultural factorsmade the relationship between gender and preference for sexual submission non-significant-that is, we could statistically eliminate the gender difference. These analyses suggest the multiple factorsthat may influencesexual preferences and the multiple ways that gender differences in preference for submissive sexual fantasies can be eliminated by easily assessed demographic and contextual differences in the experiences of women and men.

More on the Influence of Gender Equality on Gender Differences in Economic Preferences

Abstract This study replicates and extends the work of Falk and Hermle (2018. “Relationship of Gender Differences in Preferences to Economic Development and Gender Equality.” Science 362 (6412): eaas9899), who hypothesized that gender differences in economic preferences (patience, altruism, willingness to take risks, negative and positive reciprocity, and trust) were related to economic development and gender equality. While we were able to replicate their main results, we found that a number of methodological choices called for reexamination. Specifically, the use of an ad hoc gender equality index built by the authors lacked systematic justification, which led us to employ solely well-established indexes from gender studies in the subsequent analysis. This new analysis confirmed a positive and statistically significant association between aggregated gender differences in economic preferences and economic development conditional on gender equality. However, in contrast to the original article, the evidence of the relationship between gender differences and gender equality conditional on economic development was weak. We also investigated the relationships for the separate economic preferences and found that economic development predicts gender differences in all six preferences, whereas gender equality seems to have a negligible or null influence on most of them. Our findings provide a more nuanced view of the gender differences in economic preferences, with possible implications for policy-making.

Relationship of Gender Differences in Preferences to Economic Development and Gender Equality

Relationship of Gender Differences in Preferences to Economic Development and Gender Equality

Gender Differences in Preferences for Flexible Work Hours: Experimental Evidence from an Online Freelancing Platform

Gender Differences in Preferences for Flexible Work Hours: Experimental Evidence from an Online Freelancing Platform

Gender mainstreaming in sweetpotato breeding in Uganda: a case study.

In Uganda, sweetpotato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam] is typically a "woman's crop," grown, processed, stored and also mainly consumed by smallholder farmers for food and income. Farmers value sweetpotato for its early maturity, resilience to stresses, and minimal input requirements. However, productivity remains low despite the effort of breeding programs to introduce new varieties. Low uptake of new varieties is partly attributed to previous focus by breeders on agronomic traits and much less on quality traits and the diverse preferences of men and women in sweetpotato value chains. To address this gap, breeders, food scientists, and social scientists (including gender specialists) systematically mainstreamed gender into the breeding program. This multidisciplinary approach, grounded in examining gender roles and their relationship with varietal and trait preferences, integrated important traits into product profiles. Building on earlier efforts of participatory plant breeding and participatory varietal selection, new interventions showed subtle but important gender differences in preferences. For instance, in a study for the RTBFoods project, women prioritized mealiness, sweetness, firmness and non-fibrous boiled roots. These were further subjected to a rigorous gender analysis using the G+ product profile query tool. The breeding pipelines then incorporated these gender-responsive priority quality traits, prompting the development of standard operating procedures to phenotype these traits. Following an all-inclusive approach coupled with training of multidisciplinary teams involving food scientists, breeders, biochemists, gender specialists and social scientists, integration into participatory variety selection in Uganda enabled accentuation of women and men's trait preferences, contributing to clearer breeding targets. The research has positioned sweetpotato breeding to better respond to the varying needs and preferences of the users.

Enriching a Traditional Learning Activity in Preschool through Augmented Reality: Children’s and Teachers’ Views

Nowadays, Augmented Reality flourishes in educational settings. Yet, little is known about teachers’ and children’s views of Augmented Reality applications in Preschool. This paper explores 71 preschoolers’ opinions of Augmented Reality teaching integrated into a traditional learning activity. Additionally, five educators’ views of Augmented Reality applications in Preschool are captured. Mixed methods with questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used. The questionnaires record children’s preferences regarding their favorite learning activity between traditional and the Augmented Reality one. Additionally, they explore the activity preschoolers would like to repeat and found most enjoyable: playful. Regarding quantitative data analysis, independent/paired samples t-tests and chi-square test along with bootstrapping with 1000 samples were used. As for the qualitative data collection, educators’ semi-structured interviews focused on three axes: (a) children’s motivation and engagement in Augmented Reality activities, (b) Augmented Reality’s potential to promote skills, and (c) Augmented Reality as a teaching tool in preschool. The emerging results are: Preschoolers prefer more Augmented Reality activities than traditional ones. There are no statistically significant gender differences in preferences for Augmented Reality activities. Educators regard Augmented Reality technology as an innovative, beneficial teaching approach in preschool. However, they express concern regarding the promotion of collaboration among preschoolers via Augmented Reality.

Women’s aversion to majors that (seemingly) require systemizing skills causes gendered field of study choice

Abstract This article examines whether gender differences in preferences for field of study characteristics can explain gendered major choice. Specifically, this study focuses on a broad range of subject characteristics that are often simultaneously present: systemizing skills required (math intensity, reasoning style, affinity for technical work tasks), future job characteristics corresponding with the male breadwinner model (materialism, work–family compatibility), and characteristics invoked by behavioural preferences (risky situations and a competitive environment). To disentangle these co-occurring characteristics and minimize the influence of other factors in the decision-making process (e.g. admission likelihood), this study uses a choice experiment incorporated in the Swiss panel study TREE. In it, a representative sample of high school students choose their preferred field of study from two artificial fields with varying characteristics. The results show the largest gender differences in preferences for characteristics related to reasoning style (abstract versus creative) and affinity for work tasks (technical versus social), and smaller differences for math intensity, competitive climate, and work–family compatibility, while there are no gender differences in preferences for materialistic characteristics (salary and prestige). Unexpectedly, the gender differences are primarily caused by female students’ preferences, while male students are neutral towards most characteristics.

Women Are Perceived to Have More Power Than Men in Domains That Are Viewed As Important in U.S. Tweets.

Previous research of gender differences in power has largely focused on the public domain (e.g., leadership positions), and to a lesser extent power on the private domain (e.g., power in private relationships), where people may perceive these domains to be more or less important in their lives. We studied gender differences in preference weighted power (PWP) in different domains by weighting the perceived power by the perceived importance in life in a large set of Twitter messages from the United States (N = 9,286,471). The results showed that men (tweets including "he") are semantically related to general power, and women (tweets including "she") are related to importance in life, which in previous research have been connected to the public and private domains, respectively. Importantly, women had higher PWP than men. In conclusion, men are perceived to have more general power and women more PWP in U.S. tweets.

Relationship of Gender Differences in Preferences to Economic Development and Gender Equality

Preferences - concerning time, risk and social interactions - systematically shape human behavior, and contribute to differential economic and social outcomes between the genders. Here, we present a global investigation of gender differences in six fundamental preferences. Our data consist of 80,000 individuals in 76 representative country samples with measures on willingness to take risks, patience, altruism, positive and negative reciprocity as well as trust. Gender differences in preferences were positively related to economic development and gender equality. This suggests that greater availability of and equal access to material and social resources for both genders favor the manifestation of gender-differentiated preferences across countries.

Understanding the use of shared sanitation facilities in Delhi’s slums

ABSTRACT : In 2020, 3.6 billion people lacked access to safely managed sanitation facilities worldwide, and among them, about 16 per cent used shared sanitation facilities. The most vulnerable urban populations residing in high-density informal settlements largely rely on community sanitation facilities. Thus, there is a need to examine ways to improve users’ experience of shared facilities. Using original surveys in New Delhi’s slums, this study shows that those with access to community toilet complexes were likely to use them regularly but were highly dissatisfied with their lack of availability and poor conditions. Additionally, the study highlights gender differences in preferences for using shared latrines, where women are more likely than men to use clean, functional, and less crowded ones.

Developing a more engaging safety training in agriculture: Gender differences in digital game preferences

Digital games have been effectively used in different working sectors as an occupational safety training method but they are still overlooked in agriculture, despite the high hazardousness of this industry. At the same time, the gender issue is becoming more and more relevant both in the digital game and agricultural fields because of an increasing number of females, both among the agricultural operators and the game players . Based on these considerations, our study aimed at investigating gender differences in the preference for different game characteristics to point out which aspects of a new game for safety training purposes in agriculture may appeal to both male and female operators and which aspects need instead a careful design and high levels of customization, to be equally appreciated by both genders. An online questionnaire was administered to a group of Italian Agricultural Science university students (N = 137, 65% males and 35% females) to investigate their game preferences, in terms of game characteristics, genre and graphic style. Some clear differences (in tasks, quests, rules, and goals, colors and variety), and similarities (in graphics, drama, better rewards and game genre) emerged in males' and females' preferences. Based on these results, some practical guidelines are provided for the design of a gamified safety training tool which can appeal to and be considered engaging by both genders.

Preferences for and perceptions about politicians’ goals and how they impact women’s and men’s political ambition

Women consistently report lower levels of nascent political ambition than men, which causes problems for the recruitment of women in politics. The aim of this study is to better understand the mechanisms behind this gender gap by simultaneously studying the extent to which gender differences in preferences for and perceptions about the typical goals attained through a political career (power, independence and communal goals) can explain gender differences in political ambition. Using data collected among Belgian political and social sciences students (N = 322), our results provide a strong confirmation of the gender gap in political ambition. We also find substantial gender differences in preferences for and perceptions about goals pursued through political careers. However, these individual-level differences in preferences and perceptions only marginally reduce the gender gap in political ambition, emphasising the need for active political recruitment.

How Early Adolescent Skills and Preferences Shape Economics Education Choices

Leveraging data from Sweden and Chicago, we study the educational pipeline for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and economics majors to better understand the determinants of the gender gap and when these determinants arise. We present three findings. First, females are less likely to select STEM courses in high school despite equal or better preparation. Second, there are important gender differences in preferences and beliefs, even conditional on ability. Third, early differences in preferences and beliefs explain more of the gaps in high school sorting than other candidate variables. High school sorting then explains a large portion of the gender difference in college majors.

Preferences or expectations: understanding the gender gap in major choice

Abstract How do students decide what major to study and what explains the low enrolment of women in science and economics? Using data on the subjective expectations of undergraduate students who are in the process of selecting a major, we model major choice as a function of major-specific and job-specific attributes. We identify significant gender differences in the preferences for different attributes as well as in the expectations of future outcomes, especially of grades. Women are willing to pay twice as much as men for course enjoyment and higher grades, even as they expect lower grades in science and economics. This suggests that in addition to gender differences in preferences being shaped by pervasive norms about which subjects are considered more suitable for women, women also suffer from a relative confidence gap in their major-specific abilities.

The Third Wave of COVID-19 versus the Residential Preferences in Poland: An Assessment of Economic Factors and Psychological Determinants

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a reflection on our need for contact with nature. It was the result of suddenly imposed limitations of the everyday functioning of many people and confining them to the space of their own house or apartment. This paper presents the results of a study on the preferences of Polish city dwellers in terms of their need for contact with nature at their place of residence before the COVID-19 outbreak and after the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the study was to identify any relationship between preferences regarding access to nature at the place of residence prior to and during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and variables such as gender, age, background, and distance between the place of residence and any natural or urban green spaces. An online survey was used to examine urban residents’ need for access to nature. Significant gender differences in preferences, both prior to and during the pandemic, were found. Preferences also varied depending on the distance between the place of residence and natural and urban green spaces and depending on the origin of the interviewee (urban or rural). The origin was found to have a significant impact on preferences. The need for contact with nature at the place of residence, both before and after the pandemic, was found to be greater among respondents from rural areas.