Gender Gap and Multiple Choice Exams in Public Selection Processes

  1. J. IGNACIO CONDE-RUIZ 1
  2. JUAN JOSÉ GANUZA 2
  3. MANUEL GARCÍA 13
  1. 1 Universidad Complutense de Madrid
    info

    Universidad Complutense de Madrid

    Madrid, España

    ROR 02p0gd045

  2. 2 Universitat Pompeu Fabra
    info

    Universitat Pompeu Fabra

    Barcelona, España

    ROR https://ror.org/04n0g0b29

  3. 3 Washington University in St. Louis
    info

    Washington University in St. Louis

    San Luis, Estados Unidos

    ROR https://ror.org/01yc7t268

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Revue:
Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics

ISSN: 0210-1173

Année de publication: 2020

Titre de la publication: On gender perspectives in public economics

Número: 235

Pages: 11-28

Type: Article

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D'autres publications dans: Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics

Résumé

Multiple choice tests are commonly used by the public sector in their recruitment and selection procedures as well as in the regulation of entry for some professions (lawyers, physicians, etc.). Empirical and experimental literature has found evidence that females skip more questions on these tests undermining their performance. This bias could increase the gender gap in the public sector, and it can be an important caveat of the public recruitment policies for attracting talent. Using data of the Spanish “MIR (Médico Interno Residente)” national exam of 2019, we analyze if gender differences in behavior arise in high-stakes tests, in which the outcome of the test has long term impact on the test takers careers. We find that when a female prepares intensively and trains for the test, although she skips more questions than men, the effect is significantly smaller than in the previous literature. However, we still find small differences in the exam performance between men and female, and this gender gap in performance is greater for the best candidates

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Juan-José Ganuza gratefully acknowledges the support of the Barcelona GSE Research, the government of Catalonia, and the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science Through Project ECO2017-89240-P. Jose Ignacio Conde-Ruiz acknowledges the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation Through Project PID2019-105499GB-I00.

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