Cynthia Torres Psychology
Julie Dunkel Psychology
Jaida Benish Psychology
Megan Pierce Biology
Raquel Lopez Associate Professor of Psychology
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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine age-related differences in risk-taking behaviors within the context of childhood adversity. Data was collected from 46 participants who completed the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART). The BART measures risk-taking behavior by prompting participants to administer pumps of air to virtual balloons programmed to pop after a random number of pumps. Participants were unaware of when each balloon was programmed to pop, thus encouraging them to consider potential risk and reward payoff. The more pumps a participant administered, the more hypothetical points they were able to collect for a trial. When popped, participants received zero points in that trial. In all 30 trials, participants had the option to bank their points before moving onto a new balloon. Of the 46 participants, 12 were young adult females, 18 young adult males, 10 old adult females, and 6 old adult males. Individuals ranging from 18 to 22 years old made up the young adult sample, whereas individuals ranging from 57 to 89 years old made up the old adult sample. Participants were also administered the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire (JVQ). The JVQ prompted participants to answer a series of yes/no questions about adverse childhood experiences. The BART and JVQ were collected as part of a larger ERP study examining the role of adversity on decision-making processes in younger and older adults. Our hypotheses included younger adults having a faster reaction time compared to older adults (H1), younger adults being more likely than older adults to take risks on the BART (H2), and individuals with higher JVQ scores being more likely to engage in risk taking (H3). We conducted an independent sample t-test to examine differences in popped balloons. There was no significant difference in the juvenile victimization (JV) reported by younger or older adults. Participants’ chronic JV was negatively associated with the number of balloons popped overall, r(42)= -.24, p=.122. There was no significant difference between timing and reaction time in the BART, r(42)=-.29,p=.06. There was no significant difference between chronic JV and balloon size, r(42)=.19, p=.21. None of the hypotheses above were supported. However, this adds to study on risk taking among younger and older adults. In future, look at other factors that will impact risk taking such as background, sexual behavior, and drug and alcohol use.
