The effect of perceived control on risk taking

The experiment investigates the effect of perceived control on risk taking in a dynamic, everyday task. Using established and validated video simulati on techniques, the risk-taking preferences for 96 drivers were measured for a range of driving activities (speed choice, following distance, gap accep tance, and overtaking). The perceived control manipulation was as follows: Half of the participants were told to imagine they were driving the vehicle , and the other half were told to imagine they were passengers. Those who w ere told to imagine they were driving chose significantly faster speeds tha n did those who were told to imagine they were passengers. Differences for the other risk-taking measures were not significant. For speed choice, it c ould be argued that an illusion of control was in operation, such that thos e who were in control (i.e., drivers) were comfortable with a higher level of risk than those who were not in control (i.e., passengers).