A Longitudinal Study of Gender Effects among Entrepreneurs in Decision Making: Chile, Hong Kong, Europe, & the USA

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to generate a holistic view of the differences between men and women in entrepreneurialism and investment and explore the aspects that factor into the strategic decision making process. Previous papers have focused solely on one aspect at a very specific time but this paper will look at multiple studies in different time periods to evaluate the scope of differences over time. The data has been collected from studies conducted in Hong Kong, Chile, Europe, and the United States between 1997 and 2016. The findings showed that women are still more risk averse than men and tend to save more than invest. This is reflected in entrepreneurialism as well as in the factors influencing their management decisions. This paper is original because it uses studies across time to collect data for comparison across genders and includes three aspects of management: entrepreneurial, investment, and savings. We contribute to the literature by showing there may be a trend of smaller gender differences over time.