are women smarter?

Female investors are more pessimistic than male investors, according to the TIAA-CREF survey. It found that the "loss of trust" in U.S. government leadership — including President Bush, Congress and even the Supreme Court — was driven largely by women.

Particularly, they are much more likely than men to lack trust that Social Security will be there for them when they retire, that the economy is growing or that the government can protect us from terrorism.

"Women are more likely than men to place value in trustworthiness," says Geoff Feinberg, vice president of Roper Public Affairs, a polling firm that surveyed investors for TIAA-CREF. "And they get madder when that trust is betrayed."

Of investors surveyed — men and women — 62% said they have "become more cautious" as a result of the bad news over the past year, including corporate scandals and the war in Iraq.

Katrina just made things worse.
"It's a major event, and it's clearly shaken people's faith in the economy's ability to absorb it," says Glen Weiner, director of polling at TIAA-CREF.