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Impulsivity as a predictor factor of health-related risk-taking

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 August 2024

A. Megías-Robles*
Affiliation:
1Department of Basic Psychology, University of Malaga, Málaga
L. Moreno-Ríos
Affiliation:
1Department of Basic Psychology, University of Malaga, Málaga
R. Megías-Robles
Affiliation:
2Junta de Andalucía, Motril
A. Martínez-Estrella
Affiliation:
2Junta de Andalucía, Motril
M. A. Torres
Affiliation:
3Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

There is a broad consensus that risk taking is largely determined by risk perception. However, previous literature has shown numerous examples of situations associated with potential health risks where our decisions are not made in accordance with the level of perceived risk.

Objectives

The aim of the present research was to investigate the role of impulsivity in the explanation of the discordance observed between risk perception and risk-taking in health-related domains.

Methods

The sample consisted of 612 participants (Mage = 23.54, 73,2% women). All participants were assessed for levels impulsivity and levels of risk perception and risk-taking propensity in contexts related to health.

Results

Results revealed that higher levels of impulsivity were significantly related to a lower tendency to perceive and take risks in the health domain. Most important for our objectives, we observed that the relationship with impulsivity was significantly stronger for risk taking than for risk perception. Moreover, impulsivity significantly predicted risk taking propensity when controlling for risk perception.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that, in the health-related domains, impulsivity can differentially affect risk perception and risk taking, thus, offering a possible explanation for the inconsistencies observed in the previous literature.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

Type
Abstract
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of European Psychiatric Association
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