Gist for Risk: Link between Impulsivity and Fuzzy-Trace Theory Explanations of Adolescent Risk Behavior

Adolescence is characterized by a steep increase in risk taking behaviors. Research indicates that individual differences in impulsivity are highly correlated with adolescent risk taking (VerdejoGarcia, Lawrence, & Clark, 2008). Fuzzy-Trace Theory, a dual-process theory, proposes that differences in decision-relevant information processing predict decision outcomes (Reyna & Brainerd, 1995). Gist-based reasoning relies on qualitative information processing that emphasizes the abstract meaning of decision alternatives (e.g., “avoid risk”), whereas verbatimbased reasoning represents a form of quantitative, literal information processing (e.g., the specific risk of getting pregnant). Research suggests that gist processing is risk preventing, whereas verbatim processing is risk promoting (Mills, Reyna, & Estrada, 2008). The present study examines whether positively-valenced gist processing of decision-relevant information (e.g., “approach risk”) can account for the information processing of highly impulsive adolescents. Participants were 929 (28% male) late-adolescent students (mean age 19.7 years) recruited from undergraduate classes at Cornell University. They were administered an online survey with self-report measures of gist and verbatim processing associated with sexand alcohol-related risk behavior, self-report measures of different facets of impulsivity, a delay discounting task, and a measure of real-world risk taking behavior. Results show that positive gist and impulsivity measures are positively associated with sexand alcohol-related risk behavior. Mediation analyses suggest that positive gist is a significant mediator between impulsivity and risk behavior. The results indicate that positive gist is an important correlate of adolescent risk behavior and a significant mediator of the association between impulsivity and risk taking. Impulsivity, Gist, and Adolescent Risk 3 Gist for Risk: Link between Impulsivity and Fuzzy-Trace Theory Explanations of Adolescent Risk Behavior Adolescence has long been considered a difficult transition period characterized by a steep increase in risk taking behaviors (Arnett, 1992; Arnett, 1999). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), among U.S. high school students, 34.2% were currently sexually active and 38.9% of those currently sexually active students had not used a condom during their last sexual intercourse (CDC, 2010). The leading causes of morbidity and mortality in youth are linked to risky behaviors, such as sexual activity leading to unintended pregnancies and/or sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), especially human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (CDC, 2010). In 2009, there were approximately 757,000 pregnancies among women aged 15 to 19 years, an estimated 9.1 million cases of STDs in 15 to 24 year-olds, and an estimated 6,610 cases of HIV/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) among youth 15 to 24 years occurring annually (CDC, 2010). Similarly, there are 1,825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 that die from alcohol-related injuries, including motor vehicle crashes (Hingson et al., 2005). These troubling rates of STDs, unintended pregnancies, and alcohol-related deaths in youth provide impetus for the importance of research on adolescent health. Specifically, an understanding of why adolescence is such a distinct period of increased risk taking and what predictors and mechanisms are involved in adolescent risky behaviors is of great importance for the development of potential interventions to reduce adolescent risk behaviors. Impulsivity and Adolescent Risk Taking Although there is a general trend for increased risk taking during adolescence, prior research indicates that adolescent risk taking is subject to considerable individual variation. More specifically, researchers have found that individual differences in impulsivity are highly Impulsivity, Gist, and Adolescent Risk 4 correlated with risk taking behaviors in adolescents (Hoyle, Fejfar, & Miller, 2000; VerdejoGarcia, Lawrence, & Clark, 2008). Impulsivity is a relatively stable trait, whereas gist and verbatim reasoning are parallel forms of processing that are activated during decision-making. Impulsivity also is a multidimensional construct, with a variety of distinct facets. Whiteside and Lynam (2001) conducted a factor analysis to determine the main features of impulsivity and found that there were four distinct components of this personality trait: urgency, the tendency to act on strong impulses often under conditions of negative affect; (lack of) premeditation, the tendency to think about the consequences of an act before acting; (lack of) perseverance, the tendency to remain focused on a task that may be difficult; and sensation-seeking, the tendency to pursue new and exciting experiences. Poor ability to delay gratification (often measured by delay discounting tasks) also has been described as a feature of impulsivity and has been shown to be associated with increased risk taking (Reynolds, 2006). Individual differences in sensation seeking, the fourth distinct component in Whiteside’s and Lynam’s (2001) factor analysis, recently has been a hot topic in research on adolescent risk taking. According to Romer (2010), there is a sharp rise in sensation seeking during adolescence that is likely to have a biological underpinning associated with dopamine functioning. Individual differences in sensation seeking have been linked to increased alcohol use, other drug use, promiscuous sexual activity, gambling, and dangerous sports (Roberti, 2004; Zuckerman, 1994). There also has been evidence of an association between individual differences in Behavioral Approach System (BAS) activation, a drive to pursue goals and rewards, including enhanced substance use (Franken & Muris, 2006; Loxton & Dawe, 2006). Although prior research has examined the association between various facets of impulsivity and adolescent risk taking, no study to date has examined all of these components of Impulsivity, Gist, and Adolescent Risk 5 impulsivity together as predictors of real-world risk behavior in adolescents. The present study expands on prior work by investigating multiple components of impulsivity in the same study, including urgency, lack of premeditation, lack of perseverance, sensation seeking, delay discounting, and BAS sensitivity as predictors of adolescents’ real-world alcohol abuse and unprotected sexual intercourse. Fuzzy-Trace Theory and Adolescent Risk Taking Given the findings of a link between different facets of impulsivity and risk taking in adolescence, it is important to examine the psychological mechanisms that may contribute to this association. One line of research has focused on different memory processes associated with risky decision-making. Reyna and Brainerd (1995) proposed a dual-process model of decisionmaking called Fuzzy-Trace Theory (FTT). These researchers hypothesized that differences in how decision-relevant information is conceptualized will determine the outcome of a decision. Reyna and Brainerd (1995) theorized that there are two forms of parallel thought processing: gist and verbatim. Gist-based reasoning relies on qualitative information processing that emphasizes the abstract meaning of decision alternatives (e.g., “avoid all risk”), whereas verbatim-based reasoning represents a form of quantitative, literal information processing (e.g., the specific risk of getting pregnant) that emphasizes weighing the risks and benefits of decision alternatives. In subsequent research, Reyna and her colleagues have found evidence for the association between this dual-process model and risky decision-making in adolescence (Reyna & Rivers, 2004; Reyna, 2004; Reyna & Farley, 2006; Reyna & Ellis, 1994; Mills, Reyna, & Estrada, 2008, Reyna, Estrada, DeMarinis, Myers, Stanisz, & Mills, 2011, Reyna, 2008). According to research conducted by Mills, Reyna, and Estrada (2008), gist processing of decision-relevant information is negatively associated with sexual risk taking and acts as protection against such risk behavior. Impulsivity, Gist, and Adolescent Risk 6 Conversely, verbatim processing of decision-relevant information is positively associated with sexual risk behavior and tends to reflect risk taking. Although Reyna and Brainerd’s Fuzzy-Trace Theory suggests a relationship between memory processes and adolescent risk taking, research has yet to examine the relationship between individual differences in personality traits such as impulsivity, often linked to increased risk taking in the literature (Franken & Muris, 2006; Hoyle et al., 2000; Loxton & Dawe, 2006; Reynolds, 2006; Roberti, 2004; Romer, 2010; Verdejo-Garcia et al., 2008; Whiteside & Lynam, 2001; Zuckerman, 1994), and differences in memory processing of such risk information. For example, Whiteside and Lynam (2001) found that some of the facets of impulsivity are associated with failure to plan ahead and the urgency to act on strong impulses, which often leads to increased risk taking. Given these findings, it is unlikely that individuals high on these facets of impulsivity are verbatim processers, which according to Mills et al. (2008), is supportive of risky behavior, inasmuch as these impulsive individuals do not tend to process details or take the time to weigh the risks and benefits of decisions. Yet, highly impulsive individuals cannot be gist processers either, because prior research (Mills et al., 2008) suggests that gist is protective against risky behavior. Therefore, there must be a different type of memory processing that can explain increased risk taking in highly impulsive adolescents. The Present Study The present study examines the possibility of a positively-valenced gist processing of decision-relevant information that can account for the information processing of highly impulsive, sensation seeking adolescents. Positive gist can also be defined as the abstract meaning of deci