Risk perception and financial literacy: an analysis through PROMETHEE II of inter- and intra-gender differences

Gender differences in financial decisions can affect wealth accumulation, investment strategies, and retirement planning. The present paper analyzes the relationship between gender, financial literacy, and risk perception, combining statistical methods and PROMETHEE II. Findings have shown that the way people react to losses depends on financial literacy, while the degree of risk the individual thinks they can tolerate is linked to both financial literacy and financial behavior, including overconfidence mechanisms. With respect to gender, a strong difference emerges not only between genders but also within genders, whereby women require more attention from policy interventions to mitigate discrepancies in the financial system.