Honors Theses
Advisor
Dr. Erin O'Mara Kunz
Department
Psychology
Publication Date
4-22-2026
Document Type
Honors Thesis
Abstract
Previous research has found that women tend to be more risk-averse than men (Charness & Gneezy, 2012). In particular, women are more likely to make decisions that offer greater certainty but lower reward (Bruce & Johnson, 1994). This study examines gender differences in risk-aversion using real behavioral decision-making data from the television show Jeopardy! Data for this study was collected from a fan-made online source, J! Archive (https://j-archive.com/index.php). Using game data from regular season episodes of Jeopardy! from 2024, the association between gender and the proportion of earnings wagered during final jeopardy, and whether it was moderated by whether it is a players first game or they are the returning champion, their place in the competition prior to Final Jeopardy!, and the episode’s gender composition. Further, given that men also tend to show greater self-confidence than women when it comes to betting (Prasad & Mohta, 2012), whether a player answered the Final Jeopardy! question correctly or not was also included as a moderator as it signals some degree of self-confidence in the Final Jeopardy! topic, which is revealed prior to contestants entering their wager. The results indicate a significant gender difference in the proportion of earnings wagered in Final Jeopardy!, with men wagering a higher percentage of their earnings than women. This effect was not moderated by whether a contestant was a returner or not, their place in the game prior to Final Jeopardy!, or episode gender distribution. However, there is a significant interaction between gender and whether a contestant answered the Final Jeopardy! question correctly in predicting the proportion of their earnings wagered. Men and women wager a similar proportion of their earnings when they ultimately answered the Final Jeopardy! question correctly, but when they answered the Final Jeopardy! question incorrectly, men wagered significantly more of their earnings than women. This research contributes to discussions on gender differences in risk aversion and self-confidence using real behavioral decision-making data.
Permission Statement
This item is protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code) and may only be used for noncommercial, educational, and scholarly purposes.
Keywords
Undergraduate research
eCommons Citation
DeGregorio, Audrey, "What Are Gender Differences in Risk Aversion? Examining the Role of Gender in Final Jeopardy Wagers" (2026). Honors Theses. 503.
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/uhp_theses/503
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