Kinship structure, stress, and the gender gap in competition

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization • Vol/Iss. 192 • Elsevier • • Published In • Pages: 36-57 •
By Lowes, Sara

Abstract

The study builds on a previous study with the Maasai suggesting that matrilineal descent will close that gap of competitive behavior between men and women. The author conducted a lab experiment consisting of 614 individuals representative of 27 ethnic groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In the experiment, the participants completed a timed matching game. First, they played alone with the goal to complete 5 games within 5 minutes to win money. Next, they competed against an undisclosed opponent to complete the most games and to keep all of the winnings. Finally, the participants were able to choose which pay they preferred based solely on the results from the first round. This was designed to reflect competition preference and results indicated that women were less likely to engage in competition regardless of kinship system.

Samples

Sample Used Coded Data Comment
Choice of competition experiment Researcher's own614 individuals from 27 ethnic groups in the DRC

Hypotheses (1)

HypothesisSupported
Men and women of matrilineal descent will be more likely to choose to compete than those from patrilineal descent.Not supported
Documents and Hypotheses Filed By: danielle.russell