Adolescent and adult risk-taking in virtual social contexts

There is a paucity of experimental data addressing how peers influence adolescent risk-taking. Here, we examined peer effects on risky decision-making in adults and adolescents using a virtual social context that enabled experimental control over the peer "interactions." 40 adolescents (ag...

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Published inFrontiers in psychology Vol. 5; p. 1476
Main Authors Haddad, Anneke D M, Harrison, Freya, Norman, Thomas, Lau, Jennifer Y F
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Switzerland Frontiers Media S.A 18.12.2014
Subjects
Adolescent
Adult
Peer influence
Psychology
risk-taking
Social Conformity
peer influence
adolescent
social conformity
risk-taking
adult
decision-making
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Summary:There is a paucity of experimental data addressing how peers influence adolescent risk-taking. Here, we examined peer effects on risky decision-making in adults and adolescents using a virtual social context that enabled experimental control over the peer "interactions." 40 adolescents (age 11-18) and 28 adults (age 20-38) completed a risk-taking (Wheel of Fortune) task under four conditions: in private; while being observed by (fictitious) peers; and after receiving 'risky' or 'safe' advice from the peers. For high-risk gambles (but not medium-risk or even gambles), adolescents made more risky decisions under peer observation than adults. Adolescents, but not adults, tended to resist 'safe' advice for high-risk gambles. Although both groups tended to follow 'risky' advice for high-risk gambles, adults did so more than adolescents. These findings highlight the importance of distinguishing between the effects of peer observation and peer advice on risky decision-making.
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Present address: Freya Harrison, Centre for Biomolecular Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK; Jennifer Y. F. Lau, Psychology Department, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK
This article was submitted to Developmental Psychology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Psychology.
Edited by: Natasha Kirkham, Cornell University, USA
Reviewed by: Ruth Ford, Anglia Ruskin University, UK; Jeffrey Coldren, Youngstown State University, USA
ISSN:1664-1078
1664-1078
DOI:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01476