Gender gap in self‐employment: The role of risk attitudes

Abstract

This paper examines the link between the willingness to take risk and the gender gap in self‐employment in the transition economy, where for decades entrepreneurship was considered a crime. Using rich data on risk preferences and entrepreneurial activities, we show that male–female risk tolerance differential is the main determinant of the gender gap in self‐employment in Ukraine. The decomposition results indicate that up to 38% of the gap can be attributed to this factor. Robustness tests support the validity of the baseline findings by suggesting that the results are not confounded by such factors as being unemployed before starting a current job, having a self‐employed household member, or living in a relatively wealthy household before transitioning to self‐employment.

Risk Aversion, Entrepreneurial Attitudes, Intention and Entry Among Young People in Uganda and Germany: A Gendered Analysis

“…Our assumption is based on previous analyses indicating that women tend to be more behaviourally inhibited than men (Link et al, 2017). It is argued that women experience more psychological and emotional distress when they achieve bad outcomes, which increases their fear of failure and the tendency to avoid the risks involved in self-employment (Hayduk & Williams, 2019). Hence, it is less likely for them to choose a career in entrepreneurship (Bloemen-Bekx et al, 2019).…”