'Night owls' bigger risk takers than 'early birds'

Women who are night owls are as susceptible as men when it comes to risk taking, a new study suggests.

The research suggests that sleep patterns are linked with important character traits and behavior, study author Dario Maestripieri, University of Chicago professor in Comparative Human Development said.

Night owls-people who tend to stay up late and wake up late in the morning-are different in many important ways from early risers, he found.

"Night owls, both males and females, are more likely to be single or in short-term romantic relationships versus long-term relationships, when compared to early birds," Maestripieri said.

"In addition, male night owls reported twice as many sexual partners than male early birds," he added.

The study assessed financial risk aversion among male and female students and found men are more willing to take financial risks than women.

Females with high testosterone levels, however, were more similar to males in financial risk-taking, the study found.

The study is published in the journal Evolutionary Psychology.