Bravado and Beguile: When the Beautiful Bet Boldly

Abstract

Abstract This paper explores the relationship between facial attractiveness and risk-taking preferences using three standard elicitation methods, each modeled on its own scale. Drawing on incentivized samples of students and professionals recruited directly from LinkedIn (plumbers, lawyers, and MBA-holding business professionals) along with a standard, continuous attractiveness measure, I find that beauty is associated with greater risk tolerance across generalized, financial, and social risk domains, most prominently among lawyers and MBAs. A validated proxy for confidence is consistent with partial mediation in the generalized and financial domains, with strength varying by occupation, while a direct association between attractiveness and risk tolerance persists throughout. Beauty is particularly correlated with cooperation in the socially risky Stag Hunt setting, a link that operates largely outside the confidence channel. These associations have implications for occupational selection, fair talent allocation, digital recruiting, and other managerial settings.