2021
Working Paper
HBS Working Paper Series

Whether to Apply

By: Katherine B. Coffman, Manuela Collis and Leena Kulkarni

Format:Print
| Language:English
| Pages:66

Abstract

Labor market outcomes depend, in part, upon an individual’s willingness to put herself forward for different opportunities. We use laboratory and field experiments to explore gender differences in willingness to apply for higher return, more challenging work. We find that, in maletyped domains, women view themselves as less qualified for opportunities, both because of differences in self-assessments and because of uncertainty about where “the bar” is. We provide field evidence that reducing ambiguity surrounding required qualifications reduces the gender gap in willingness to apply among qualified candidates, increasing both the diversity and talent of the applicant pool.

Keywords

Beliefs; Gender; Information; Performance; Labor; Perception; Decision Making

Citation

Coffman, Katherine B., Manuela Collis, and Leena Kulkarni. "Whether to Apply." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-062, November 2019. (Revised June 2021.)