Positive Risk Taking in Adolescence

Abstract

Adolescents evince a more heightened propensity for risk taking than children and adults. This propensity can be directed toward negative (e.g., illegal or health-compromising) or positive (e.g., socially acceptable and beneficial) risk behaviors. Much existing research on adolescent risk behavior focuses on negative risk taking due to the public health implications of engaging in these behaviors. However, it is also important for society to promote youth engagement in positive risk behaviors that may benefit the well-being of adolescents and those around them. The present study explored positive risk taking in a sample of 164 American adolescents (45% female) ages 16-20 (M = 17.9; SD = .72). There were three central aims: (1) develop a reliable self-report measure of positive risk taking and examine its association with self-reports of negative risk taking and several behavioral measures of risk taking; (2) explore the extent to which previously established psychological correlates of negative risk taking are also associated with positive risk taking; (3) determine whether positive risk taking is associated with indicators of positive functioning, such as academic orientation, grit, and mental health. Results indicated that positive risk taking was associated with greater self-reported negative risk taking, and greater risk taking, feedback learning, and punishment sensitivity on experimental risk taking tasks. Although positive risk taking was not associated with grit or internalizing symptoms, positive risk taking was positively associated with stronger school engagement and better school performance. Future directions and applications to positive youth development programming are discussed.