Whose voice matters? An experimental examination of gender bias in intra-household decision-making

We conduct an experiment to examine gender bias in intra-household decision-making in rural Bangladesh. The experiment mimics a real-life scenario, in which a risky choice with high stakes is offered to either spouse and he/she then has to decide whether to make the decision or transfer it to the other spouse. We then observe the decision-making process under alternative experimental conditions to determine intra-household gender bias. We find that women are more likely to allow their spouses to make decisions than men are. Our findings suggest that women's transfer decisions are driven by asymmetries in both power and perceived financial capabilities.