Comments on: Why you can trust a woman with an MBA http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/2009/09/08/why-you-can-trust-a-woman-with-an-mba/ Articles on game theory and personal finance Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:43:59 -0500 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Applying game theory to relationships, MBA, parenting – 4 videos by Barry Nalebuff - Mind Your Decisions http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/2009/09/08/why-you-can-trust-a-woman-with-an-mba/comment-page-1/#comment-6633 Applying game theory to relationships, MBA, parenting – 4 videos by Barry Nalebuff - Mind Your Decisions Wed, 26 May 2010 09:01:52 +0000 http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/?p=1700#comment-6633 [...] Why you can trust a woman with an MBA [...] [...] Why you can trust a woman with an MBA [...]

]]> By: anomdebus http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/2009/09/08/why-you-can-trust-a-woman-with-an-mba/comment-page-1/#comment-5588 anomdebus Tue, 08 Sep 2009 18:00:47 +0000 http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/?p=1700#comment-5588 Steph covered my initial reactions. (thanks!) Another issue came to mind while reading her response. Does the effect wear off after some amount of time? As stated in the article, it makes sense that if you spend some of your away time on career building, that shows you are very interested in your career. What if you take your leave after getting the MBA, does it diminish the signalling? Also, if the 5 years has passed on the job and it is expected that the person has recouped the cost, does the signalling still hold? (sounds like a job for DBA*!) michael, in almost all cases, the benefits will not exceed the on the job benefits, so you are still talking about the same amount of payback time and probably longer with leave. Signalling isn't meant create certainty, only increase probability. The outliers are the ones that push forward the boundaries of signals, leading to higher and higher hudles. * doctorate of business administration not database administrator Steph covered my initial reactions. (thanks!) Another issue came to mind while reading her response. Does the effect wear off after some amount of time? As stated in the article, it makes sense that if you spend some of your away time on career building, that shows you are very interested in your career. What if you take your leave after getting the MBA, does it diminish the signalling? Also, if the 5 years has passed on the job and it is expected that the person has recouped the cost, does the signalling still hold? (sounds like a job for DBA*!)

michael, in almost all cases, the benefits will not exceed the on the job benefits, so you are still talking about the same amount of payback time and probably longer with leave. Signalling isn’t meant create certainty, only increase probability. The outliers are the ones that push forward the boundaries of signals, leading to higher and higher hudles.

* doctorate of business administration not database administrator

]]> By: michael webster http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/2009/09/08/why-you-can-trust-a-woman-with-an-mba/comment-page-1/#comment-5586 michael webster Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:17:47 +0000 http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/?p=1700#comment-5586 In my opinion, this is not a credible signal of commitment - the woman could always change her mind after getting the appropriate perks, such as extended child care leave. In fact, the whole economic theory of signalling is highly overrated since there is no systemic theory of mistakes, misunderstandings, or failure to communicate. In my opinion, this is not a credible signal of commitment – the woman could always change her mind after getting the appropriate perks, such as extended child care leave.

In fact, the whole economic theory of signalling is highly overrated since there is no systemic theory of mistakes, misunderstandings, or failure to communicate.

]]> By: Steph http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/2009/09/08/why-you-can-trust-a-woman-with-an-mba/comment-page-1/#comment-5584 Steph Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:35:13 +0000 http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/?p=1700#comment-5584 Great post, I definitely believe there is game theory involved in the decision to get an MBA, particularly for a woman. My observations in going through the process and observing my peer group have been: A) Women choosing to pursue an MBA that I have met, on the aggregate, do seem more intent on the career path (relative to the family path) than those who aren't. The effect among men seems less apparent, though obviously it's an investment for anyone to get an MBA. For example, as I have started to meet my incoming MBA class of 500+, I have met several married men, some with kids. I have yet to meet a married woman. B) One of my own motivations for getting an MBA, which is shared by some of my female peers, is that if I DO decide to leave the workforce to have a family, an MBA can make it easier for me to get back in someday. Both the network of people that I will meet and the credential that will be on my resume will hopefully be helpful. So my personal decision to get the MBA is more reflective of my plan to have a long-term career than my short-term choice of whether to be in the workforce in the next 5-10 years. Interested to hear if others have observed the same trends. Great post, I definitely believe there is game theory involved in the decision to get an MBA, particularly for a woman. My observations in going through the process and observing my peer group have been:
A) Women choosing to pursue an MBA that I have met, on the aggregate, do seem more intent on the career path (relative to the family path) than those who aren’t. The effect among men seems less apparent, though obviously it’s an investment for anyone to get an MBA. For example, as I have started to meet my incoming MBA class of 500+, I have met several married men, some with kids. I have yet to meet a married woman.
B) One of my own motivations for getting an MBA, which is shared by some of my female peers, is that if I DO decide to leave the workforce to have a family, an MBA can make it easier for me to get back in someday. Both the network of people that I will meet and the credential that will be on my resume will hopefully be helpful. So my personal decision to get the MBA is more reflective of my plan to have a long-term career than my short-term choice of whether to be in the workforce in the next 5-10 years.

Interested to hear if others have observed the same trends.

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