Genetic influences on economic preferences

Arbeitspapier

In this paper, we use the classical twin design to provide estimates of genetic and environmental influences on experimentally elicited preferences for risk and giving. Using standard methods from behavior genetics, we find strong prima facie evidence that these preferences are broadly heritable and our estimates suggest that genetic differences explain approximately twenty percent of individual variation. The results thus shed light on an important source of individual variation in preferences, a source which has hitherto largely been neglected in the economics literature.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: SSE/EFI Working Paper Series in Economics and Finance ; No. 679

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Design of Experiments: General ; Microeconomic Behavior: Underlying Principles ; Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
• Subject: Genetics ; Altruism ; Risk Aversion ; Preferences ; Experiments ; Risikopräferenz ; Altruismus ; Schätzung ; Präferenztheorie ; Biologie ; Schweden

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Cesarini, David ; Dawes, Christopher T. ; Johannesson, Magnus ; Lichtenstein, Paul ; Wallace, Björn
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Stockholm School of Economics, The Economic Research Institute (EFI)
• (where): Stockholm
• (when): 2007

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/56327
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET