Don’t leave your kid unattended? Sex differences in children’s competitiveness in presence of their guardian

In the growing literature connecting parents-child economic decision-making, it remains unclear whether children’s competitive performance is affected by their guardian’s presence. We conducted a field experiment in which over 150 children were assigned to one of three tasks (i.e., trivia, a speed stacking game, or jumping a rope) and then chose to compete. Simultaneously, we elicited the guardians’ beliefs about their child’s willingness to compete in the three tasks and their expected performance. We employed a randomized encouragement design, asking guardians to remain close and support their child during the task or to remain distant. We find a positive correlation between the guardians’ presence and better performance in the speed stacking game (but not in the other tasks). Mothers’ beliefs about competitive behavior and performance across tasks are more correlated than fathers’ beliefs. Mixed-sex pairs (i.e., girls with a male guardian and boys with a female guardian) are more likely to compete than same-sex pairs. •We conducted a field experiment with over 150 children in presence of their guardians.•We elicit guardians’ beliefs about the child’s willingness to compete and performance.•Mothers’ beliefs across tasks are more correlated than fathers’ beliefs.•The guardian’s presence during the tasks improved child’s performance in one task.•Boys are more likely to compete with a female guardian, and girls with a male guardian.