# Difference in time and risk preferences: physicians and general population across genders

## TL;DR

This study compares how physicians and the general population in Japan make decisions involving risk and time, finding some gender-related differences in preferences.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into gender-based differences in risk and time preferences between physicians and the general population in Japan.

## Key findings

- Physicians tend to be more risk-averse than the general population, though not statistically significantly.
- Physicians are more future-oriented, especially regarding significant health or monetary gains.
- Female physicians show gender-based differences only in the monetary domain, unlike the general female population.

## Abstract

The alignment of preferences between physicians and patients can cause variations in treatment decision-making, thereby affecting health outcomes. However, research on the differences in preferences between physicians and the general population is scarce. This study examines the risk and time preferences of physicians compared with those of the general population, exploring the influence of gender concordance on health outcomes and decision-making in healthcare.

We conducted an online field experiment in October and November 2022 in Japan and analyzed the responses of 469 individuals, including physicians and the general population. The survey was stratified by age and gender to align with the demographics of physicians nationally. Participants’ preferences were measured across the health and monetary domains by using a modified multiple price list test format.

The findings revealed that physicians tended to be more risk-averse than the general population in the health and monetary domains, although no statistically significant differences were observed. Physicians were found to be statistically significantly future-oriented, particularly regarding their significant health or monetary gains. Furthermore, while the female general population was more risk-averse in both domains, a gender difference in the physician group was observed only in the monetary domain.

The results affirm that preference differences between physicians and the general population exist in Japan and clarify the unique preference traits of female physicians.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13561-025-00653-4.