The underrepresentation of women at the top of hierarchies is often explained by gender differences in preferences. We … characterized by self-selection into an uncertain, competitive and male-dominated environment. We observe gender differences in … playing behavior consistent with women being more averse towards risk and competition. Moreover, we demonstrate how "shying …

such differences are driven by different attitudes towards competition. In our experiment subjects choose between a … social norms whose nature and origin we discuss. -- competition ; tournament ; piece rate ; gender ; risk-aversion ; relative … ability ; experiment …