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Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-100) Also available in print.

While sleep loss has been shown to have detrimental effects on cognitive, physiological, and psychological processes, it has only recently been investigated as a possible causal factor of risk-taking behavior (i.e., a conscious choice to engage in dangerous behavior despite knowledge of possible loss or harm). Among the few studies that have been conducted in this field, the majority found that as individuals become sleepier, their propensity to engage in risk-taking behavior increased. The results of the current study indicated a positive relationship between increased sleep loss and two measures of specific risk-taking behavior (i.e., substance use, sexual compulsivity), but no significant relationship between sleep loss and measures of general risk-taking behavior. There was some evidence for temporal stability of the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), though scores on the IGT were not related to scores on other measures of risk-taking, nor to measures of sleep loss. Negative mood was found to partially mediate the relationship between sleep loss and substance use, as well as the relationship between sleep loss and sexual compulsivity.

Entrepreneurial activity is a vital part of any economy whether developed or developing. In South Africa the primary focus of the government has been on the development of previously disadvantaged communities and designing programs to encourage the participation of women in entrepreneurship. This study sought to profile South African female entrepreneurs as well as investigate their risk taking propensity in relation to other constructs. T-tests as well as ANOVAs were conducted on data obtained from 122 female entrepreneurs across South Africa. The results indicated that the female entrepreneurs in the current study were typically white, English speaking, married with children, were well educated and possessed previous working experience mainly in managerial positions. The results also indicated a significant difference in risk taking propensity according to age with entrepreneurs who are 35 years and younger having a higher risk taking propensity than those who are 36 years and older. However, no significant differences were found in risk taking according to entrepreneurial motivations, gender role orientation, level of education and previous experience. The practical implications of the study are discussed together with the limitations.

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Thesis (M.A.)--West Virginia University, 2007. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 100 p. : ill. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 75-82).

The perspective from which people view or imagine a situation has downstream effects on the construal of that situation and subsequent cognitions and behaviours. My study suggests that these effects from the mental and visual imagery literature carry over to the domain of interactive media, specifically video gaming. I manipulated whether 82 undergraduates played a motorcycle racing video game from either the first-person perspective or the third-person perspective and had participants rate the perceived risk of a list of 24 different inherently risky activities and then rate their willingness to engage in the same activities. Participants who had played the video game from the third-person perspective perceived the activities as more risky than participants in the first-person perspective. Furthermore, participants in the third-person perspective condition reported less willingness to engage in the risky activities than those in the first-person condition. Mediation analysis confirms that the effect of perspective on willingness to take risks is mediated by risk perceptions. Implications are discussed for the literatures on visual perspective, action construal and detrimental effects of video gaming.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2002. / Supervisor: Mark Stafford. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available from UMI.

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on Feb 17, 2010). The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file. Dissertation advisor: Dr. James A. Wall Jr. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.