Emotional news impacts men more strongly, influencing their financial decisions.
New research from the University of Essex reveals that emotional news stories significantly influence men’s financial decisions.
The study found that men are much more likely than women to let emotions from one situation affect their choices in unrelated, risky financial decisions.
After viewing real-life negative news stories, men tended to avoid financial risks, even when those decisions had no connection to the news content. In contrast, women’s financial decisions remained unaffected by emotional news.
Challenging Gender Stereotypes
“These results challenge the long-held stereotype that women are more emotional and open new avenues for understanding how emotions influence decision-making across genders,” said lead researcher Dr Nikhil Masters, from Essex’s Department of Economics.
In the study, 186 people watched emotional news stories and were then asked to make risky financial decisions with real money. Interestingly, women’s financial decisions remained unaffected by the emotional tone of the news, while men showed a clear tendency to play it safe.
Implications for Financial Advice
The findings from this study could shape advice for high-stakes financial decisions.
“We don’t make choices in a vacuum and a cooling-off period might be crucial after encountering emotionally charged situations, especially for life-changing financial commitments like buying a home or large investments,” Dr Masters added.
The research team, which involved academics from the University of Nottingham and Bournemouth University, now wants to investigate why only men are affected by these carryover effects.
“Previous research has shown that emotional intelligence helps people to manage their emotions more effectively. Since women generally score higher on emotional intelligence tests, this could explain the big differences we see between men and women,” said Dr Masters.
Reference: “Do emotional carryover effects carry over?” by Nikhil Masters, Tim Lloyd and Chris Starmer, 20 November 2024, Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics.
DOI: 10.1016/j.socec.2024.102312
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