Risk Takers Who Are They [PDF]

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Biological reasons for risk-taking Biologists appear to have discovered a physical reason that explains why some people like Jamie are risk- takers. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, a chemical that transmits signals between nerve cells (neurons). It is linked to the brain's reward system and is the chemical that makes us feel good, and scientists believe it to be linked to risk-taking. Our nerve cells have dopamine receptors which control the amount of dopamine that each cell receives, but not all receptors may be active. When a person has few active receptors to control the amount of dopamine that is received, a cell can become flooded, resulting in an extreme feeling of happiness. Researchers at Vanderbilt University in Nashville and Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York asked 34 men and women to complete a questionnaire about their risk-taking to assess whether they seek new opportunities or are cautious in life. This was then followed by a brain scan using a technique called positron emission tomography to analyse the number of dopamine receptors that the participants had. The results of the research, reported in the Journal of Neuroscience (2008), were consistent with similar studies carried out with rats, and had the same outcome. It concluded that people who are risk-takers have fewer dopamine receptors than people who are not. This suggests that the rush of pleasure a risktaker receives when a cell becomes flooded with dopamine can become addictive for some people. They therefore pursue new and exciting activities in order to try to repeat this feeling, and as a result their concern for risk becomes considerably reduced.



Psychological reasons for risk-taking Dopamine gives us a biological reason for risk-taking, but scientists believe there may be psychological reasons too. Sensation-seeking is a personality trait that describes the desire to find activities that bring us pleasure. In 1964, psychologist Marvin Zuckerman created the sensationseeking scale, a personality test which was designed to show how much of the trait a person has. His 40-item questionnaire, still used today, was given to people who were active in seeking new activities, and to people who were more satisfied with a quiet life. From the results, he decided that there are four components of sensation- seeking. The first is thrill and adventure seeking; for example doing dangerous sports. The second is experience seeking; looking for new experiences. The third is disinhibition; the desire to take risks in social activities. The fourth is boredom susceptibility; a low tolerance of boredom. While risk-taking is not a trait in itself, it is very much associated with sensation-seeking, as a high sensation-seeker does not appraise risk in the same way that a low sensation-seeker does. A desire to achieve pleasure means that there is a greater willingness to take more risks. Studies of identical twins have been carried out to determine whether sensation-seeking is a result of genes or our environment. Pairs of twins who had grown up together and pairs of twins who had grown up apart were studied (Zuckerman, 2007). The study determined that 60% of the sensation-seeking trait can be determined by genes, showing just how influential genes are in risk-taking. This is higher than many other traits, which usually range from 30-50%, suggesting that the sensation-seeking trait, and a tendency towards risk-taking, can in fact be inherited.



Age and risk-taking Age is also relevant to the area of risk-taking. When we look at the actions of some young people, they seem to have been done with a clear disregard for safety. It now appears there may be neurological reasons for this. Dr Jay Giedd from the National Institute of Mental Health in the U.S.



(2008) conducted a study which involved scanning the brains of 145 children every two years for ten years using an MRI (magnetic resonance image) scanner. The results showed that the area of the brain that sits just behind the forehead--the pre-frontal cortex—does not fully develop until as late as 25. This part of the brain is known to control the way we organise, plan, make judgments, and reason, so it is essential for calculating risk. If teenagers and young adults are dependent on a part of their brain which is not fully formed until their mid-20s, it is logical that they will sometimes miscalculate and therefore take more risks.



Gender and risk-taking It may be believed that Jamie, the risk-taker introduced at the beginning of this paper, takes risks simply because he is male, assuming that fewer women are risk-takers. But according to recent research by Columbia Business School in the U.S. (2011), gender seems to have an effect on the type of risk-taking that takes place and not whether it actually occurs. The research found that financial risks are more typical of men whereas social risks, such as giving a controversial opinion in public or making a signifcant career change, are more representative of women. These differences may be related to a person's perception of how risky an action is. The researchers suggest that when you are less familiar with a situation, you are more likely to perceive it as risky. They believe that men and women perceive situations differently. possibly because of their different life experiences affected by their gender. While Jamie may not be involved in risky behaviour as a direct result of being male, his gender and life experiences to date could have impacted on his choice of career, allowing him to take risks in a situation in which he does not perceive himself to be doing so.



Conclusion There has been much research that examines risk- taking and why different people behave differently. The research presented in this paper indicates that there are both biological and psychological explanations as to why people like Jamie may choose to take more risks than others. However, none of these explanations are definitive. It is possible that the brain's reward system, a person's sensation-seeking character, age, and gender all impact on risk-taking behaviour.



Alasan pengambilan resiko ada empat. Yang pertama adalah alasan biologis. Dopamin adalah neurotransmitter, bahan kimia yang mentransmisikan sinyal antara sel-sel saraf (neuron). orang yang berani mengambil risiko memiliki sedikit reseptor dopamin daripada orang yang tidak berani mengambil resiko. Alasan psikologis, Pencarian sensasi adalah sifat kepribadian yang menggambarkan keinginan untuk menemukan kegiatan yang menyenangkan. ada empat komponen pencarian sensasi antara lain,  pencarian sensasi dan petualangan, pencarian pengalaman, disinhibisi,  kerentanan kebosanan. gen juga berpengaruh dalam pengambilan risiko. Usia juga berrkaitan dengan pengambilan risiko.Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa area otak yang berada tepat di belakang dahi--korteks pre-frontal--belum berkembang sepenuhnya hingga usia 25 tahun. gender juga berpengaruh pada jenis pengambilan risiko. pria dan wanita memandang situasi dengan cara yang berbeda  karena pengalaman hidup mereka yang berbeda dipengaruhi oleh jenis kelamin mereka.



There are four reasons for taking risks. The first is biological reasons. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, a chemical that transmits signals between nerve cells (neurons). risk-takers have fewer dopamine receptors than risk-takers. Psychological reasons, Sensation seeking is a personality trait that describes the desire to find pleasurable activities. There are four components of sensation seeking, among others, thrill and adventure seeking, experience seeking, disinhibition, and boredom vulnerability. genes also play a role in risk taking. Age is also associated with risk taking. Research shows that the area of the brain just behind the forehead -the pre-frontal cortex -- doesn't fully develop until age 25. gender also affects the type of risk taking. men and women perceive situations in different ways because their different life experiences are influenced by their gender.