Trading Differently, Without Detectable Performance Differences: Gender in Simulated Stock Trading

This article examines whether gender is associated with differences in trading style and performance in a simulated stock-market environment. It uses data from a four-hour CAC 40 trading simulation involving 133 second-year Management students, each managing a virtual EUR 100,000 portfolio under transaction costs, no short selling, and continuous ranking incentives. The analysis controls for age, prior market exposure, and the five OCEAN personality traits. The empirical strategy relies on a series of ordinary least squares regressions that distinguish trading style from performance. Trading style is measured through average transaction size, invested capital during the simulation, portfolio variability, a composite capital-engagement index, and a turnover ratio, while performance is the portfolio return. The results show that gender is not significantly associated with return. By contrast, gender is associated with several dimensions of trading style. Male participants take larger positions, retain a lower share of cash, display more variable portfolios, and a more intensive trading style. Beyond the widely reported finding that men tend to trade more frequently, the study documents gender-related differences across several dimensions of trading style. These associations remain statistically significant after controlling for prior market exposure and OCEAN personality traits, but they are not accompanied by a statistically significant difference in return. The contribution lies in documenting multidimensional differences in trading style among novice investors operating under identical conditions, rather than in replicating the finding that greater male trading activity is associated with lower performance.