Adolescent decision making and risk behavior

Adolescence is frequently described as a time of engaging in risk-taking behaviors. One

crucial factor is likely to be the decision making process that adolescents use

when opportunities for risk behavior arise.

Adolescence is a life stage during which individuals are generally at their

strongest and healthiest, yet, compared to other life stages, they have

increased morbidity and mortality rates from preventable causes. One

explanation of this paradox involves adolescents propensity for risk-taking.

Risk taking can be defined as engaging, often impulsively, in behaviors that

are high in subjective desirability or excitement but which carry the potential

for injury or loss.

Adolescents and young adults are more likely than individuals at other life

stages to engage in behaviors that involve risks, such as drinking alcohol,

taking illegal drugs, having unprotected sex, engaging in delinquent activity,

and reckless driving.

Adolescents also have a high level of curiosity to discover something.

Adolescents can be like solving mathematical problem and/or equation,

sometimes to get the answer you need to use a formula or in a shortcut

method called TRIAL and ERROR.

The students have high level of mathematical curiosity on exploration. This

means that they have high level of appetitive strivings for novelty and

challenge as well as awareness and clarity of their emotions with willingness

to express positive feelings openly. In addition, the six items in this dimension of

curiosity indicates that the students are willing to look for new opportunities to

grow as a person and they want to do complex and challenging things.