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We compared the sensitivity of two classes of decision tasks to social desirability: description-based tasks and experience-based tasks. Participants completed a battery of decision tasks in two conditions: a Control condition in which they were asked to perform their best, and an Impression condition in which they were required to impress judges in the context of hiring decisions. The Impression condition was predicted to elicit relatively lower levels of risk taking than the Control condition. This was confirmed for the description-based tasks while the experience-based tasks were fairly robust to the impression manipulation. This finding points to the potential of experience-based tasks' for assessing individual differences, particularly in situations where social desirability is prevalent. A second finding is that risk taking levels showed consistency across the description-experience divide, but in line with the different sensitivity of the tasks to social desirability, this was only observed in the Control condition.

ObjectiveAttrition is a common problem in weight-management. Understanding the risk factors for attrition should enhance professionals’ ability to increase completion rates and improve health outcomes for more individuals. We propose a model that draws upon neuropsychological knowledge on reward-sensitivity in obesity and overeating to predict attrition.Design & Methods52 participants in a weight-management program completed a complex decision-making task.Decision-making characteristics – including sensitivity to reward – were further estimated using a quantitative model. Impulsivity and risk-taking measures were also administered.ResultsConsistent with the hypothesis that sensitivity to reward predicted attrition, program dropouts had higher sensitivity to reward than completers (p < 0.03). No differences were observed between completers and dropouts in initial BMI, age, employment status, or the number of prior weight-loss attempts (p ≥ 0.07). Completers had a slightly higher education level than dropouts, but its inclusion in the model did not increase predictive power. Impulsivity, delay of gratification, and risk-taking did not predict attrition, either.ConclusionsFindings link attrition in weight-management to the neural mechanisms associated with reward-seeking and related influences on decision-making. Individual differences in the magnitude of response elicited by rewards may account for the relative difficulty experienced by dieters in adhering to treatment.

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Objective Pathological gamblers display at the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) a strong preference for choices featuring high immediate rewards, but higher unpredictable and more delayed losses. The present study aimed, by applying the Expectancy-Valence (EV) model to the IGT, at identifying impaired components of decision-making under uncertainty in pathological gamblers. Methods Twenty pathological gamblers and 20 non-gamblers performed the IGT. The EV model breaks down IGT performance into three cognitive processes: (i) the subjective weight that the individual assigns to gains versus losses (gain/loss parameter), (ii) the degree of prominence given to recently-obtained information, compared to past experience (recency parameter), and (iii) the consistency between learning and responding (consistency parameter). Results Pathological gamblers obtained higher scores on the gain/loss parameter as compared to controls, indicating higher sensitivity to monetary gains. This measure was also correlated with the degree of gambling dependence severity. No between-group difference was observed in the recency and the consistency parameters. Conclusion These findings suggest that pathological gamblers’ strong preference for choices featuring high rewards but higher losses during the IGT is due to a hypersensitivity for large monetary gains, which might reflect a hypersensitivity in their reward systems. In contrast, we found in pathological gamblers no evidence of inability to integrate information across time, a function that has been shown previously to be linked to damage in the prefrontal cortex.