Risk Taking for Sexual Versus Monetary Outcomes using the Balloon Analogue Risk Task

The present study examined risk-taking behavior in relation to sexual and monetary outcomes using the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART). Adult men (n = 61) completed two modified BART tasks (one with monetary outcomes and one with sexual outcomes) and a battery of self-report measures concerning sexual and nonsexual constructs. Several findings are reported. First, risk-taking behavior concerning sexual outcomes can be evoked and quantified using the modified BART task reported here. Second, risk-taking for money was associated with latent factors associated with criminal behavior, drug use, and gambling. Third, risk taking for sexual outcomes was associated with the latent factors of sexual excitability and criminal behavior. Results suggest that stimulus-specific measures of risk taking are better associated with some outcomes. Study findings are discussed in terms of their relevance to laboratory research on the behavioral processes that underlie risky decision making.