Sex differences moderate decision making behaviour in high impulsive sensation seekers

Abstract

We tested whether individuals with high levels of impulsive sensation seeking learn to choose advantageously in a specific decision-making context. One hundred twenty-eight participants (73 female) completed a neuropsychological task, the variant version of the Iowa Gambling Task (vIGT; Bechara, Tranel, & Damasio, 2000), in which individuals must select cards from decks that offer high initial losses if they are to eventually make a profit. The selection from decks of cards that led to the highest profit as the task progressed was higher in high, compared to low, impulsive sensation seekers. However, learning to choose advantageously was moderated by sex of participant. Specifically, compared to females, male high impulsive sensation seekers learned more quickly to make consistent selections from the advantageous decks despite the large immediate losses. Overall, the data support the hypothesis that insensitivity to loss due to impulsive sensation seeking can lead to financial gain.

Keywords:

• Emotional decision making
• Sex differences
• Sensation seeking
• Impulsivity