Template-type: ReDif-Paper 1.0 Author-Name: Fouarge, D. Author-workplace-name: Research Centre for Educ and Labour Mark Author-Name: Kriechel, B. Author-workplace-name: Research Centre for Educ and Labour Mark Author-Name: Dohmen, T.J. Author-workplace-name: Macro, International & Labour Economics Title: Occupational sorting of school graduates: the role of economic preferences Abstract: We relate risk attitudes and patience of young graduates from high-school, college
and university, measured around the time that they start their labor market career in a large representative survey, to the riskiness and timing of earnings in the occupations they choose to work in. We find a systematic positive and significant relation between willingness to take risks and measures of occupational earnings risks and employment risk that we derive from a large administrative data set. Patient individuals are significantly more likely to choose for occupations with a steep earnings profile. Individuals whose economic preferences are not well aligned with the riskiness and timing of earnings in their initial occupation are more likely to change to an occupation that better matches their economic preferences. Series: ROA Research Memoranda Creation-Date: 20140101 Number: 009 File-URL: https://cris.maastrichtuniversity.nl/ws/files/1085243/guid-a1342a5a-666c-4d40-99a1-e9024439efca-ASSET1.0.pdf File-Format: application/pdf File-Size: 439994 Handle: Repec:unm:umaror:2014009 DOI: 10.26481/umaror.2014009