New Research Links Risk-Taking to Higher Intelligence

Amy Taylor December 08, 2015

Do you love adventures? Do you prefer riding a roller coaster or doing a bungee jump than watching movies or going out with friends for dinner? If you consider yourself a risk-taker, you can also assume that you have a higher intelligence. According to new research, people who take chances may have a more developed brain than their cautious counterparts.

A group of Scandinavian scientists found a difference in the brain’s white matter between "high risk-takers" and "low risk-takers." Those who were identified as high risk-takers had significantly more white matter in the brain. The white matter is the brain’s neural network responsible for efficiently analysing and transmitting information.

The study involved 34 male participants ages 18 to 19 who went through a driving simulation test which took each one of them through a set of 20 traffic lights. The study volunteers had the option to either stop or complete the journey as quickly as possible, but run the risk of a "collision" or a red light. Each participant was awarded points based on the level of risk they took during the exercise.

Those who made quicker decisions and took more chances during the interactions appeared to exhibit more brain activity than those who opted to drive more safely. Researchers conducted brain scans before the experiment began in order to compare them with the results following the driving simulation.

One limitation of the study, however, is that it was only conducted in men. While male and female brains are not wired differently, there still could be a few psychological factors at play. For instance, men in general are more prone to taking dumb risks as shown in previous research. Older research has linked quick thinking to more intelligence in both women and men.

The researcher hope that their findings would inform educators about the behaviour of risk-takers and how it can help enhance learning and develop decision making. The authors theorize that seeking out challenges stimulates the brain, which pushes it to change or grow.

"All the positive brain chemicals respond under such conditions, promoting growth factors that contribute to the development of the robust neural networks that form the basis of our physical and mental skills," said Dagfinn Moe, study researcher and behavioural analyst.

"The point here is that if you’re going to take risks, you have to have the required skills," he continued. "And these have to be learned. Sadly, many fail during this learning process -- with tragic consequences. So this is why we’re wording our findings with a Darwinian slant -- it takes brains to take risks."

The findings were published in the journal PLOS ONE.

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Are You A Risk Taker? You May Be More Intelligent