By Julie E 
Photo Credit (Pixabay)
Older people, contrary to popular assumption, are more likely to take risks when making decisions, according to a recent study. Optimism in risk assessment is more common among the elderly because of their more optimistic emotional states. Furthermore, the possibility of losses does not discourage older persons as much as it does younger adults. The results of this study were published in Psychological Science by researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Human Development.
The average lifespan of a human being is rising. Currently, about 21% of individuals in the industrialized world are 65 and over, and by 2060, that number is predicted to reach 32%. As a result, the choices made by the elderly are having an ever-increasing effect on economies and cultures around the world. Against this backdrop, studies have compared the decision-making abilities of individuals of different ages when faced with potentially dangerous situations. Sixty adults, ranging in age from 18 to 30 years, and sixty-two older adults, ranging in age from 63 to 88 years, were analyzed for parallels and differences in their risky decision-making. Several multiple-choice issues requiring participants to select one of two alternatives were distributed to them. There was an associated win/loss probability for each option. The participants were given information regarding the amount that could be gained or lost and the chance of winning or losing in each of the 105 such choice tasks.
Compared to their younger counterparts, the older individuals were more inclined to go for the riskier choice. This result was ascribed by the researchers to the higher mood experienced by the older subjects. Previous research has shown that elderly people tend to report more pleasant emotions and fewer negative ones than younger people. “If you are in a good mood, you are more likely to see the positive potential outcomes of a decision,” says Thorsten Pachur, main author of the study and senior researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development’s Center for Adaptive Rationality. The older players were more likely to take risks because they had a more positive outlook on their chances of winning. The younger individuals, says Pachur, were more concerned about avoiding losses, whereas the older ones placed equal weight on winning and losing.
A more daring attitude is a result of an optimistic outlook.
Many earlier studies found the opposite—that elderly persons were less risk-averse. This disparity, according to the research team, is due to variations in the study designs: Both choices in this study were hazardous, but to varying degrees, unlike most prior research that offered participants the choice between two equally dangerous alternatives. Participants were thus compelled to give greater thought to each option.
Not only did the study show that people’s risk-taking tendencies differed, but it also indicated that older people tended to make poorer decisions overall. In particular, they exhibited a marked disinclination toward selecting the choice that was objectively superior, i.e., the one that offered a higher anticipated financial return. The decline in fluid intelligence with age, or the slower processing speed and problem-solving abilities of older persons, is responsible for the disparities in decision quality, according to Thorsten Pachur.
Decisions made by the elderly are rarely good.
According to the findings, the context in which risk-taking behavior is examined has a significant impact on the observed age difference. Also, they make it clear how people’s emotions and thoughts work together while deciding whether to take a chance. Although they serve different purposes, both are important. According to Thorsten Pachur, “cognition helps to identify which of the two options is the objectively better choice,” but emotions are mostly responsible for deciding which of the two options is riskier.