Title: Sensation seeking tendency in freeskiing Objectives: The aim of this work is sensation seeking tendency in freeskiing. Methods: Were chosen due to parameters of examined group of freeskiers and required outputs. For sensation seeking tendency in freeskiing were chosen Sensation Seeking Scale form V. Results: The comparison of our group of freeskiers with population average was detected significant differences. Statistically significant differences were detected in all 4 subscales. In sensation seeking scale are freeskiers significant different compare to population average in total score of SSS. This was caused primarily due to score of subscale TAS- thrill and Adventure seeking. Keywords: Freeskiing, personality, experiencing, flow, sensation seeking scale

We attempted to identify the psychobiological mechanisms that mediate the process by which the sensation seeking trait culminates in behavior. We used the Sensation Seeking Scales to assess the SS trait in individuals who expressed a desire to skydive. We obtained measures of autonomic (heart rate) and endocrine (salivary cortisol) activity before, during and after skydiving. To distinguish the contribution of novelty, we compared novices (N=29) to experienced jumpers (N=15). All jumpers exhibited HPA-axis activation; novices exhibited a prolonged response and more extreme peak in cortisol compared to experienced jumpers, suggesting that novelty contributes to an intense pattern of stress responding. Both groups displayed increases in heart rate; there were no significant differences between the groups, indicating that repeated exposure to the stressor did not habituate this system. We provided evidence that the stress response systems instantiate novelty and risk to motivate and reward behavioral expressions of the SS trait.

The purpose of this study is to examine if testosterone shows reactivity to skydiving and to examine whether the testosterone level and reactivity was associated with sex and sensation seeking trait of the participants. Testosterone is an important steroid hormone which has several biological and socio-behavioral effects on people and is also present in disproportionate amounts in males and females; thus, it is important to explore how this hormone acts in different sex. Furthermore, exploring the relationship between sensation-seeking and testosterone could provide insight into the relation between psychological factor and hormonal response in humans. Forty-four people were recruited to participate in the study. The sample comprised of 73% males (N=32) and 27% females (N=12) with a mean age of 24 years (SD = 4.6) and an age range of 18 to 49. The participants volunteered to jump out of an airplane and give saliva samples at different time points during that day and during another day (basal levels). This study found that testosterone shows reactivity in response to skydiving, where the peak levels in males were higher than in females. It also found that people who scored higher in experience-seeking scores had higher testosterone level at jump than people who scored lower. Furthermore, it also revealed that people who scored higher in intension-seeking scores showed more reactivity in terms of testosterone i.e. the rise was steeper in these people. In summary, we see that psychological factors and sex predicted reactivity and peak level of testosterone after skydiving.

Although recent studies have begun to examine potential factors that might affect sexual appeals effectiveness, many questions remain unexplored. Based on previous studies relevant to sexual appeals, this study firstly distinguishes and explores two types of sexual appeals: implicit and explicit. Furthermore, this study compares the effects of two types of sexual appeals when product types are considered. In addition, sensation seeking is also incorporated into this research to examine how it may sway the effectiveness of the sexual appeals. The present study uses experimental design to investigate the advertising effects of different types of sexual appeals (non-sexual appeal vs. explicit appeal vs. implicit appeal) and product type (sex-related vs.non sex-related). A 3X3 factorial design is conducted. The ad effects are measured by purchase intention and attitude toward the brand to observe the response under different scenarios. The results indicate that when a sex-related product is promoted, sexual appeals are more effective than non-sexual appeals. There is an interaction effect between sexual appeal and product type. To be specific, the explicit sexual appeal is more effective than the implicit sexual appeal when a sex-related product is promoted. However, such superior effects disappear as it turns to non sex-related product promotion. Additionally, for individuals with higher sensation seeking, the explicit sexual appeal is more effective than the implicit sexual appeal when the product is related to sex. On the opposite, for those with median degree of sensation seeking, the implicit appeal is more effective than the explicit appeal to promote the product which is not sex-related. Finally, for those with low degree of sensation seeking, there is no difference in advertising effectiveness between explicit and implicit appeal. According to these findings, this study suggests that marketers should consider not only the product they promote but also the sensation seeking of the target consumers before choosing an appropriate sexual appeal to maximize the advertising effects.

Although alcohol use and related problems are highly prevalent in emerging adulthood overall, college students drink somewhat more than do their peers who do not attend college. The personal or social influences underlying this difference, however, are not yet well understood. The present study examined whether personality traits (i.e., self-regulation and sensation seeking) and peer influence (i.e., descriptive drinking norms) contributed to student status differences. At approximately age 22, 4-year college students (n = 331) and noncollege emerging adults (n = 502) completed web-based surveys, including measures of alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, personality, and social norms. College students drank only slightly more heavily. This small difference, however, reflected personality suppression. College students were lower in trait-based risk for drinking, and accounting for traits revealed a stronger positive association between attending college and drinking more heavily. Although noncollege emerging adults reported greater descriptive drinking norms for social group members, norms appeared to more strongly influence alcohol use among college students. Finally, despite drinking less, noncollege individuals experienced more alcohol-related problems. The association between attending college and drinking heavily may be larger than previously estimated, and it may be masked by biased selection into college as a function of both self-regulation and sensation seeking. Differing patterns of alcohol use, its predictors, and its consequences emerged for the college and noncollege samples, suggesting that differing intervention strategies may best meet the needs of each population. / text

The current study examined divergences among impulsivity and sensation seeking items from the Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire Impulsive Sensation Seeking scale in terms of their relations to other personality models, deviance, and laboratory task outcomes. A sample of 654 undergraduates was gathered across two studies and given a Five Factor Model of personality measure (e.g. NEO Five Factor Inventory, NEO Five Factor Report Form), deviance measures (e.g. Antisocial Behavior Inventory, Explicit Attitudes Towards Marijuana Questionnaire), and three laboratory tasks (e.g. Balloon Analogue Risk Task, Newmans Card-Playing Task). Results demonstrated the hypothesized divergences among impulsivity and sensation seeking items on measures of personality and deviance as well as laboratory tasks. We conclude that Impulsive Sensation Seeking is multidimensional and would be more useful if employed as two independent constructs: (Lack of) Premeditation and Sensation Seeking.

abstract: The present study tested the respective mediating effects of sensation seeking and initial level of response (LR) to negative, sedative alcohol effects on the relation between the density of familial history of alcoholism and adolescent alcohol use. Additionally, the present study tested the direct effect of LR to negative, sedative alcohol effects on adolescent drinking over and above the effects of sensation seeking; and also tested the moderating effect of sensation seeking on the relation between level of response negative, sedative alcohol effects and adolescent drinking. Specifically, OLS regression models first estimated the effects of sensation seeking, LR to negative, sedative alcohol effects, and their interaction on alcohol outcomes, over and above the influence of covariates. Indirect effects were then tested using the PRODCLIN method through RMediation. Analyses failed to support sensation seeking as a mediator in the relation between familial history of alcoholism and adolescent drinking, and as a moderator of the relation between LR and adolescent drinking. However, analyses did support a robust direct effect of LR to negative, sedative alcohol effects on adolescent alcohol involvement. A significant mediating effect of initial LR to negative, sedative alcohol effects on the relation between familial alcoholism and adolescent drinking was found, however failed to maintain significance in post-hoc analyses attenuating the downward bias of the measure of initial LR. Initial LR to negative, sedative alcohol effects continued to predict adolescent drinking after attenuating measure bias. These findings strengthen research on initial LR to negative, sedative alcohol effects as a risk for greater alcohol involvement in adolescence, and underscore the complexity of studying the familial transmission of alcoholism in adolescent populations / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2015

Master of Science / Department of Psychology / Donald A. Saucier / Researchers have yet to examine how trait sensation seeking and state positive affect combine to influence participation in risky behaviors. This study examined how participant levels of sensation seeking and positive affect interacted to influence participant interest in performing a risky behavior. It was hypothesized that an interaction between sensation seeking and positive affect would be found, such that high sensation seekers low in positive affect would show more interest in participating in a risky activity than high sensation seekers that were high in positive affect or all participants low in sensation seeking, regardless of positive affect. Trait sensation seeking was measured in an initial group of participants (N = 693), using a subscale of the Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire (Zuckerman Kuhlman, Joireman, Teta, & Kraft, 1993). Using these scores, high and low sensation seekers (N = 99) were invited to a second study, where videos were used to manipulate levels of state positive affect (Hemenover, 2003). Participants were then given a questionnaire to measure interest in participating in a risky drug study. No interaction was found, but a main effect for sensation seeking (Zuckerman, 1971) was discovered, such that high sensation seekers reported more interest in participating in a risky behavior than low sensation seekers. Therefore, it appears that participant interest in risky behaviors was a function of levels of trait sensation seeking. It is possible that problems with data collection or the risk-taking scenario contributed to the inability to support the hypothesis.

Using the Theory of Alternative Behavior (Jaccard, 1981), we examined the relationship of warmth sensuousness, physical sensuousness, and sensation seeking to individuals' tanning salon behaviors, intentions, and attitudes among undergraduates at a Southeastern university. Females, high sensation seekers, those high in warmth sensuousness, and those with darker skin types were more likely to tan. Females were more likely to intend to tan in the next year. Those higher in warmth sensuousness were more likely to intend to tan more than 10 times in the next year. Females and subjects higher in warmth sensuousness had more positive attitudes toward tanning. Significant interactions were found between warmth sensuousness and sensation seeking in the predictions of intention of tanning within the next year, and intentions of tanning more than 10 times within the next year. For both interactions, as sensation seeking increased, the relationship between warmth sensuousness and intentions strengthened.

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