Cognitive ability, risk preferences and errors

In this paper we examine the link between cognitive ability, risk preferences and the errors that people make. We build a unique dataset that contains almost 260,000 decisions made under risk in a variety of tasks by approximately 13,000 individuals, with each person having completed a test designed explicitly to measure their cognitive ability. Our analysis suggests that intelligence has (1) no impact on risk preferences and (2) a robust link to errors. Our results have implications for the development of theories that seek to explain the impact of cognitive ability on decision making.