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  3. American Economic Review
  4. May 2016
  5. Playing the Boys Game: Golf Buddies and Board Diversity

Playing the Boys Game: Golf Buddies and Board Diversity

  • Sumit Agarwal
  • Wenlan Qian
  • David M. Reeb
  • Tien Foo Sing
American Economic Review
vol. 106, no. 5, May 2016
(pp. 272-76)
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Abstract

We study the participation of women in golf, a predominately male social activity, and its influence on their likelihood of serving on a board of directors. Exploiting a novel dataset of all golfers in Singapore, we find that woman golfers enjoy a 54% higher likelihood of serving on a board relative to male golfers. A woman's probability of serving on the board in a large firm or in a predominately male industry increases by 117% to 125% when she plays golf. Joining the boy's informal network appears to facilitate women's entrance or success in the executive labor market.

Citation

Agarwal, Sumit, Wenlan Qian, David M. Reeb, and Tien Foo Sing. 2016. "Playing the Boys Game: Golf Buddies and Board Diversity." American Economic Review, 106 (5): 272-76. DOI: 10.1257/aer.p20161033

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • G34 Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Voting; Proxy Contests; Corporate Governance
  • J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
  • M12 Personnel Management; Executives; Executive Compensation
  • M51 Personnel Economics: Firm Employment Decisions; Promotions