Risk Preferences and Prenatal Exposure to Sex Hormones for Ladinos

PLoS ONE, Vol. 9(8), p. e103332, August 2014 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0103332

10 Pages Posted: 11 Apr 2017

See all articles by Diego Aycinena

Diego Aycinena

University of Pennsylvania

Rimvydas Baltaduonis

Gettysburg College - Department of Economics

Lucas Rentschler

Utah State University - Department of Economics and Finance

Date Written: June 26, 2014

Abstract

Risk preferences drive much of human decision making including investment, career and health choices and many more. Thus, understanding the determinants of risk preferences refines our understanding of choice in a broad array of environments. We assess the relationship between risk preferences, prenatal exposure to sex hormones and gender for a sample of Ladinos, which is an ethnic group comprising 62.86% of the population of Guatemala. Prenatal exposure to sex hormones has organizational effects on brain development, and has been shown to partially explain risk preferences for Caucasians. We measure prenatal exposure to sex hormones using the ratio of the length of the index finger to the length of the ring finger (2D:4D), which is negatively (positively) correlated with prenatal exposure to testosterone (estrogen). We find that Ladino males are less risk averse than Ladino females, and that Ladino males have lower 2D:4D ratios than Ladino females on both hands. We find that the 2D:4D ratio does not explain risk preferences for Ladinos. This is true for both genders, and both hands. Our results highlight the importance of exploring the behavioral significance of 2D:4D in non-Caucasian racial groups.

Keywords: Risk, Experiments, 2D4D, Testosterone

JEL Classification: C9, D81

Suggested Citation

Aycinena, Diego and Baltaduonis, Rimvydas and Rentschler, Lucas, Risk Preferences and Prenatal Exposure to Sex Hormones for Ladinos (June 26, 2014). PLoS ONE, Vol. 9(8), p. e103332, August 2014 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0103332, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2949146

Diego Aycinena

University of Pennsylvania ( email )

3718 Locust Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19104
United States

Rimvydas Baltaduonis

Gettysburg College - Department of Economics ( email )

300 N Washington St
Campus Box 391
Gettysburg, PA 17325
United States

Lucas Rentschler (Contact Author)

Utah State University - Department of Economics and Finance ( email )

Logan, UT 84322-1400
United States

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