Rational Lifetime Investment Strategies: Gender Differences in the Allocation of Assets in Retirement Savings Plans

Running Head: GENDER DIFFERENCES IN ASSET ALLOCATION

Rational Lifetime Investment Strategies: Gender Differences in the Allocation of Assets in Retirement Savings Plans Chase Lancaster* Anubhav Raj** Marjorie McElroy, Faculty Advisor

Honors Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for Graduation with Distinction in Economics in Trinity College of Duke University. Duke University Durham, North Carolina 2009

*Chase
Lancaster
is
an
investment
banking
analyst
for
Jefferies
&
Co.
in
New
York.

He
can
be
 reached
at
crl8@duke.edu
for
any
questions/comments.


 **Anubhav
Raj
is
a
consulting
analyst
for
Deloitte
in
Atlanta.

He
can
be
reached
at
 anubhav.raj@duke.edu
for
any
questions/comments.


Gender Differences in Asset Allocation

Acknowledgements We thank Professor Marjorie McElroy (Duke University) for providing guidance and insights throughout our research process from the perspective of an accomplished researcher. We also thank Dr. Gary Thompson (Duke University) for his help in assisting with our statistical analysis. We are also grateful to Kristin Hamb, Erin Kim, and Hiromi Tanigaki for their continual feedback throughout this project.

2

Gender Differences in Asset Allocation

Abstract Previous research has demonstrated that women have greater risk aversion than men. Controlling for age, education, family size, income, self-reported financial risk tolerance, and occupation, this study examines the impact of gender on asset allocation decisions in retirement accounts. Our findings suggests that after accounting for a large number of factors, single women tend to choose more conservative investment allocations in their retirement accounts than do single men. However, within married households, no significant gender differences in asset allocation were found. Spousal influence within married couples was examined and seemed to explain away gender differences for married households....