Naturally designed for masculinity vs. femininity? Prenatal testosterone predicts male consumers' choices of gender-imaged products

• 2D:4D digit ratio is a biomarker of prenatal sex hormone exposure in humans.
• We replicate a behavioral digit-ratio study approach in consumption choice context.
• 2D:4D is found to predict choices of masculine vs. feminine products among males.
• A lower 2D:4D is found to predict choice of products with a more masculine image.
• A higher 2D:4D is found to predict choice of products with a more feminine image.

In this paper, we find that a proxy of prenatal testosterone exposure (i.e., digit ratio) is a significant predictor of preferences for products that differ in perceived masculinity vs. femininity. A more masculine (feminine) digit ratio predicts choice of products that have an increasingly masculine (feminine) image. This relationship is statistically significant for male consumers, but not for females.