Risk-seeking

See also: Novelty seeking
A neurosis is an irrational fear of some object or behavior which causes a perverse craving for the very thing that is feared. (See death drive.) This manifests as risk-seeking behavior. This is called a personality disorder.

A neurosis can be partial or total. A partial neurosis can be cured easily through proper mental hygiene. See Irrational fears. A total neurosis is not so easily cured. The person becomes locked into a mindset (great, cool, macho, holy) and cannot be cured until the mindset is fixed. Defence mechanisms are a common way of responding to a neurosis but they only make the situation worse.

Cravings can be so intense as to be crippling. Such intense cravings draw the person in against their will and causes them to shut down critical thinking thereby causing them to do things they would not do in their right mind. People shut down their critical thinking because it is the only way they know to make the fear go away. (Some people live in a permanent state of experiencing fear whenever they try to turn on their critical thinking skills.)

It hardly needs to be said but risk-taking behavior should not be taken lightly. It can ruin a persons whole life.

## Adrenaline junkie

An *adrenaline junkie* is somebody who engages in sensation-seeking behavior through "the pursuit of novel and intense experiences without regard for physical, social, legal or financial risk". Such activities include extreme and risky sports, substance abuse, unsafe sex, and crime. The term relates to the increase in circulating levels of adrenaline during physiological stress. Such an increase in the circulating concentration of adrenaline is secondary to activation of the sympathetic nerves innervating the adrenal medulla, as it is rapid and not present in animals where the adrenal gland has been removed. Although such stress triggers adrenaline release, it also activates many other responses within the central nervous system reward system which drives behavioral responses, so while the circulating adrenaline concentration is present, it may not drive behavior. Nevertheless, adrenaline infusion alone does increase alertness and has roles in the brain including the augmentation of memory consolidation.

## Child personality traits' effect on adulthood – What traits contribute to risk-seeking?

In a study done by Friedman et al. (1995), they found significant evidence to support that low childhood conscientiousness contributed heavily to adulthood mortality. Those who were high in conscientiousness as a child were 30% less likely to die in their adulthood. Ultimately, their findings solidified that low levels of childhood conscientiousness predict risk seeking, and risk-seeking increases the chance of accidental death. Though risk-seeking deteriorates with age, risky exposure to abusive substances in adolescence can lead to lifetime risk factors due to addiction. Conscientious individuals are subject to greater internal impulse control which lets them think out risky decisions more carefully, while those low on conscientiousness are more likely to endanger themselves and others by risky, or sometimes even criminal behaviour.

## Psychometric paradigm

The psychometric paradigm explores what stable personality traits and risk behaviours have in common with an individualistic approach. Zuckerman's (1994) sensation seeking theory is important in assessing the causative factors of certain risk-seeking behaviours. Many risk-seeking behaviours justify humans need for sensation seeking. Behaviours like adventurous sports, drug use, promiscuous sex, entrepreneurship, gambling, and dangerous driving to name a few both represent sensation seeking, as well as risk seeking. Impulsivity has been linked to risk-seeking and can be described as the desire to indulge in situations with a potential reward, and little to no planning of the potential punishments of loss or reward. Impulsivity has also been linked to sensation seeking and in recent theories have been combined to form a higher order trait called impulsive sensation seeking.

## Neuropsychological paradigm

The neuropsychological paradigm looks at why people make the decisions they do, as well as the neuropsychological processes that contribute to the decisions people make. This view looks less at impulsivity, puts more emphasis on cognitive dynamics and assumes people take risks because they have assessed the future outcomes.

## Men vs. women seeking risks

Demographic differences also play a role in risk-seeking between individuals. Through an analysis done by scientists, they demonstrated that men typically seek risks more than women. There are biological differences in men and women that may lead to the drive to seek risks. For example, testosterone plays a large role in risk-seeking in people and women have significantly lower levels of this hormone. This hormone has behavioural effects on aggression, mood and sexual function, all of which can lead to risk-seeking decision making. In their study, they also found that testosterone in excess leads to increased sexual enjoyment, and therefore more of an incentive to engage in risky unprotected sex.