Gender, risk aversion, and the drawing power of equilibrium in an experimental corporate takeover game

We examine female versus male behavior in an experimental corporate takeover game. The hypothesized tendency of females toward greater risk aversion or altruism plays little role in determining behavioral differences. However, females do behave significantly more like others in their group, selecting significantly more symmetric strategies than males. In simpler equal-endowment treatments with one natural focal point, this results in significantly greater equilibrium coordination among females. In more complex unequal-endowment treatments with two natural focal points and little feedback about which is being selected, the observed female tendencies toward conformity and symmetry no longer produce significantly superior equilibrium coordination.