Describe the studies that have demonstrated the role of emotions in gambling decisions and discuss the conclusions from these studies
What will be an ideal response?
Benedetto De Martino and his team of researchers at the University College of London took brain scans of men and women while they were being asked to make a decision about whether or not to gamble. At the start of the study, each subject was given about $100 . They were then either told they could "keep" 40% of their money or "lose" 60% of their money if they did not gamble. When subjects were told they could "keep" 40% of their money if they chose not to gamble, subjects gambled only 43% of the time. When told they could "lose" 60% of their money if they did not gamble, subjects gambled 62% of the time. Even when the chances of winning and losing were identical, the wording of the instructions made a difference in the subjects' decisions.
The results of brain scans showed that the part of the brain responsible for strong negative emotions (amygdala) was very active while subjects were making their decisions, regardless of the choice they made. Researchers concluded that emotions had a strong influence on how
subjects made gambling decisions. Further support for the significant role of emotions in decision making comes from research studies showing that people who lack emotions due to brain trauma or injury often have serious difficulties making even simple decisions.
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a. True b. False Indicate whether the statement is true or false
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