Beyond a Trait View of Risk Taking : A Domain-Specific Scale Measuring Risk Perceptions, Expected Benefits, and Perceived-Risk Attitudes in German-Speaking Populations

A German-language scale assessing tendencies to engage in risky behaviors, as well as perceptions of risks and expected benefits from such behaviors, is derived from an English version and validated on 532 German participants. The scale contains 40 items in six distinct domains of risk taking: ethical, recreational, health, social, investing, and gambling. Following a risk-return model of risk taking, perceived-risk attitude is inferred by regressing risk-taking on perceived risk and expected benefits. Risk-taking as well as perceptions of risks and benefits were domain-specific, while perceived-risk attitudes were more similar across domains, thus supporting the use of a risk-return framework for interpreting risk-taking propensity. Gender and cultural comparisons are drawn, and we discuss possibilities for future cross-cultural applications of the scale