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Scientists discover a part of the brain that makes some take larger risks than others

By admin on 2010-03-11 06:48:24

If somebody said to you “let’s flip a coin and if you win I will give you €10 but if you lose you give me €5”, most people would jump at it as the gains far outweigh the possible loss on a 50/50 chance. Consider next if the stakes were raised to €100000 if you win and €50000 if you lose and most people would decline to take part despite the odds being exactly the same at 50/50. The reason for this is apparently “risk aversion” which is controlled by a small almond shaped part of our brain called the amygdala. Scientists believe that this stems from the fact that most animals need to balance the need for food for survival with the danger from predators; too much risk can end in disaster. We humans do not have too many predators these days but our survival does depend on having enough money and hence the amygdala tends to control our financial risk aversion which is why when offered a gambling opportunity which is out of our comfort zone we decline. American Scientists have studied  two women that have damage to the amygdale and discovered that compared to a peer group of a similar age they were much more likely to gamble even when the odds were actually against them. Age is also a factor because as we grow older our brain shrinks as does the amygdale which makes us more likely to take a financial risk in older age; others would put this down to realising that we have less long to live and are therefore simply willing to take more risk. But there you have it, if you like to take larger risk in a casino than others it could be your amygdale.