Have you ever wondered why some of the craziest risk takers some how get away with it? It maybe be due to how well their brain is developed. The University of Turku in Finland conducted a study observing the brains of young males and low-risk takers. The researchers used a Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI)  to measure if one’s risky actions correlates with structure of the brain.

Researchers observed 34 young men aged 18 or 19  from upper secondary schools in Turku, Findland. They were then split into two different groups, high-risk takes and low-risk takers based on a psychological test. SINTEF researcher and behavioral analyst Dagfinn Moe says, ‘We expected to find that young men who spend time considering what they are going to do in a given risk situation would have more highly developed neural networks in their brains than those who make quick decisions and take chances.’ ‘This has been well documented in a series of studies, but our project revealed the complete opposite'”(Science Daily). One problem I find with the experiment is that they only had 34 participants, from the same area and all in secondary schools. I think they should have included more than 34 participants and also had people from different areas of Findland be involved in the experiment. 34 participants is not enough to have a solid conclusion. Because of this it is possible that there could be third confounding variables that influenced the conclusion.

The 34 men participated in a driving game in which they were awarded points according to the level of risk they were willing to take. “The test was laid out in the form of a simulated car journey through 20 sets of traffic lights” (Science Daily). During the test, when the men encountered a yellow light they had to decide to A) stop  or B) to take a chance and run the light and complete all 20 traffic lights as quickly as possible. Stopping at the stop light added three seconds to their time and if they encountered a collision, six seconds. All participants tested out the game before they started the formal test, when they were exposed to an MR scan of their brains. Before the test they were cleared of any anatomical deficiencies or mental health problems that could effect their cognitive functions. They were also all right-handed. Clearing the participants of any mental health problems levels the playing field and allows for stronger data by exempting certain variables.

The results showed that the high risk-takers did not hesitate for long before making their decisions due to their optimism, willingness to take a chance and belief that they could win determined their decision. The low risk-seekers questioned themselves. They questioned whether they should take the chance and what would happened if they crashed. This resulted in them hesitating before they ran the yellow light while choosing the “stop” button is a safe decision that resulted in no dilemma. I think that the way an individual is brought up could effect whether or not the run the yellow light immediately or whether they think about it before they take action. From experience, I feel like those who are risk-takers grow up with little parental supervision and not many rules. Those who have very strict parents are usually do not take as many risks because they are fearful of getting caught. However, some people grow up with strict parents which causes them to be big risk-takers as well.

From images of the brain researchers discovered differences in the young men’s white matter. White matter is a neural network “that transmits signals in the form of nerve impulses and is crucial to the regulation of internal communication between the different areas of the brain” (Science Daily). The brain scans showed that those who made quick decisions and took chances during driving situations had significantly more white matter than those who hesitated, evaluated the situation, and opted to drive safely. “This finding is interesting and will be important to the way we understand the brain’s development and our learning potential linked to risk-willingness,” says Moe.

In conclusion, Risk-takers may have a more developed brain because positive brain chemicals respond under risky conditions, promoting growth factors that contribute to the development or neural networks for form out physical and mental skills. Meaning that you have to take risks in order to have learned required skills.