Perceived Consequences of Risky Behaviors: Adults and Adolescents

Adult and adolescent Ss were asked to list possible consequences of either accepting or declining opportunities to engage in various potentially risky behaviors (e.g., drinking and driving, skipping school to go to a mall). Response patterns were quite similar for these adults and adolescents, indic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Developmental psychology 1993-05, Vol.29 (3), p.549-563
Main Authors: Beyth-Marom, Ruth, Austin, Laurel, Fischhoff, Baruch, Palmgren, Claire, Jacobs-Quadrel, Marilyn
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adolescent Attitudes
Adolescents
Adult Attitudes
Adults
Age Differences
Behavior
Biological and medical sciences
Comparative Analysis
Consequence
Developmental psychology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Human
Individual Development
Outcomes
Perceptions
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Risk
Risk behaviour
Risk Taking
Risk Taking Behavior
Self Report Measures
Social Behavior
Social Consequences
Social research
Teenagers
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Summary:Adult and adolescent Ss were asked to list possible consequences of either accepting or declining opportunities to engage in various potentially risky behaviors (e.g., drinking and driving, skipping school to go to a mall). Response patterns were quite similar for these adults and adolescents, indicating shared beliefs about the possibilities. Although taking and avoiding a risk are logically complementary actions, they did not prove to be psychologically complementary. Other comparisons showed systematic differences in the consequences produced for one-time and regular (or repeated) versions of the same behaviors, as well as for open-ended and closed-ended response modes. These results are discussed in terms of their methodological implications for studying risk perceptions, their practical implications for influencing adolescents' risk behaviors, and their theoretical implications for understanding intellectual development.
ISSN:0012-1649
1939-0599
DOI:10.1037/0012-1649.29.3.549