Acute stress does not affect economic behavior in the experimental laboratory

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Economics
• Experimental Economics
• Psychological Research
• Medical Research

Background:

• Behavioral economics and experimental economics traditionally select experimental situations to study decision-making.
• Medical and psychological research offer methods for inducing and measuring stress.
• Previous studies on stress and decision-making often had limited statistical power due to smaller sample sizes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of acute stress on decision-making in solitary and interactive situations.
• To assess the effects of acute stress on cognitive skills, strategic sophistication, risk attitudes, altruism, cooperativeness, and nastiness.
• To achieve higher statistical power by employing a larger sample size than previous studies.

Main Methods:

• A laboratory experiment involving 192 volunteers making decisions with monetary consequences.
• Induction and measurement of acute stress using methods from medical and psychological research.
• Binary comparisons between treatment and reference groups, supplemented by regression analysis controlling for psycho-social characteristics.

Main Results:

• Acute stress did not significantly impact cognitive skills, strategic sophistication, risk attitudes, altruism, cooperativeness, or nastiness across the general participant group.
• Regression analysis confirmed these findings after controlling for psycho-social characteristics.
• A significant decrease in risk aversion was observed specifically in men.

Conclusions:

• Acute stress generally does not have a significant effect on a wide range of decision-making parameters and social behaviors.
• Men exhibit a notable decrease in risk aversion under acute stress conditions.
• The study's findings contribute to understanding the nuanced effects of stress on human behavior and economic decision-making.