Hi Max
Thanks for your note. Yeah, I'm familiar with all the Zuckerman stuff. His
1994 book is terrific, but I need something more broadly explaining why
people voluntarily engage in risks.
Marie
Maxwell Gwynn wrote:
> Marie:
>
> Try looking into the old literature on sensation-seeking by Zuckerman.
>
> Zuckerman, M. (1971) Dimnesions of sensation seeking. Journal of
> Consulting and Clinical psychology, 36, 45-52.
>
> Zuckerman, M. (1979). Sensation seeking: Beyond the optimal level of
> arousal. New HJersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
>
> Zuckerman, M., Eysenck, S, & Eysenck, H. J. (1978). Sensation seeking in
> England and America: Cross cultural, age and sex comparisons. Journal of
> Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 46, 139-149.
>
> In fact, someone should think about updating the SSS (Sensation Seeking
> Scale) to include items such activites as:
> hang-gliding,
> ultralights,
> bunjee-jumping,
> cliff diving,
> McD's chicken-nugget-eating,
> jumping off buildings or towers with a parachute (BASE jumping?)
> X-sports
> and other recent risky behaviors.
>
> The original scale includes mountain climbing, marijuana-smoking,
> "swinging", water-skiing, "surf board riding", airplane flying, scuba
> diving, parachuting, high-board diving, drinking, pre-marital sex, and
> skiing. (Ah, I remember that weekend...) ;)
>
> You might want to assess how risky people rate such events as being.
> Perhaps "risk-takers" just don't see bungee-jumping as being as risky as
> do risk-avoiders. Alternatively, perhaps they only enjoy an activity if
> they do feel it is risky.
>
> -Max
>
> On Tue, 5 Dec 2000, Marie Helweg-Larsen wrote:
>
> > I'm trying to locate research that can help me understand why people
> > engage voluntarily in risky activities. There is plenty of research on
> > how people estimate risks (environmental and behavioral), personality
> > characteristics (e.g., sensation seeking) and even risky behavior (not
> > using a seat belt, not using birth control, etc). However, I'm
> > interested in understanding why people chose to engage in risky sports
> > (e.g., hanggliding, ultralight flying, skidiving, etc.). I can't find
> > much of anything on psyc info or sociofiles (I'm familiar with Stephen
> > Lyng's work on "edgeworkers"). Do any of you have any suggestions about
> > literatures that might address why people voluntarily engage in
> > dangerous leisure activities.
> > Marie
> >
> > --
> > Marie Helweg-Larsen, Ph.D.
> > Assistant Professor of Psychology
> > Transylvania University
> > 300 North Broadway
> > Lexington, KY 40508-1797
> > Office: (859) 281-3656
> > Web page: http://www.transy.edu/homepages/mhelweglarsen/index2.html
> >
> >
>
> Maxwell Gwynn, PhD [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Department of Psychology (519) 884-0710 ext 3854
> Wilfrid Laurier University
> Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3C5 Canada
--
Marie Helweg-Larsen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Psychology
Transylvania University
300 North Broadway
Lexington, KY 40508-1797
Office: (859) 281-3656
Web page: http://www.transy.edu/homepages/mhelweglarsen/index2.html
