So says the headline. The article continues:
When City traders have high morning testosterone levels they make more than average profits for the rest of that day, researchers at the University of Cambridge have discovered.
And indeed the studies discussed do show this effect for the 17 traders that they studied (though researchers also note that “high levels of testosterone can lead to irrational decision making”). So what’s wrong with the headline and the quoted claim above? What’s wrong is that they only studied MALE traders. Given that the study’s subject matter is the effect of sex-linked hormones, it would seem especially important to study both sexes before making general claims. On the good side, the article makes no claims at all about this showing why women are less likely to get high-powered financial careers. But I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see someone else citing it in support of that claim. (Thanks for the link, Christine!)
As a floor trader myself, I read this article with great intrigue. I work with a handful women traders in the male dominated pits. And, In all honesty, I’ve met very few elite women traders. Granted this is only in my experience, and may be the result of numerous factors. One thing I notice though is, the women do tend to take on less risk. While many of them are often mathematically brilliant, in my experience, they haven’t taken the major risks needed to be a really successful trader. Great trading is about taking huge and potentially devastating risks, but knowing when to take them. Anyways, I love the blog, you do great work! Keep it up.
High level of testosterone increases male’s sexual performance. Full sexual satisfaction triggers work efficiency and performance.
Or maybe a study of 17 men in one specific job (and likely from the same ethnic background) is not worth generalizing to the population at large… how does this stuff get published?