Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/146180 
Year of Publication: 
2016
Series/Report no.: 
SFB 649 Discussion Paper No. 2016-011
Publisher: 
Humboldt University of Berlin, Collaborative Research Center 649 - Economic Risk, Berlin
Abstract: 
We investigate how stable individuals' risk attitudes are with respect to changes in cognitive load. In a laboratory experiment using pairwise lottery choice and a within-subject design, we showthat putting subjects under load via a concurrent working-memory task significantly increases their risk aversion. Subjects made significantly faster choices under load. Regardless of load, they responded faster when choosing the less risky option in safe-risky trials, but not in risky-risky trials. We discuss how these findings relate to both dual-system and unitarysystem theories of decision making.We observe that predictions of both recent dual-system and drift-diffusion models of the decision-making process are confirmed by our data and argue for a convergence of these to-date separate strands of the literature.
Subjects: 
risk aversion
cognitive load
working memory
dual-system approach
multiple-system approach
dual-self model
drift-diffusion model
response times
JEL: 
C91
D03
D81
D87
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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