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Adults Make Riskier, More Inconsistent Decisions As They Get Older, Study Finds

Posted by Soulskill on from the they-have-more-reason-to-worry-about-the-short-term dept.

schliz writes "People aged over 65 make poorer financial decisions and more inconsistent choices than younger individuals with the same IQ, an international research group has found. The study (abstract) had 135 healthy participants aged 12-90 make a series of decisions: for example, choosing between gaining $5 and the chance to win $20 in a lottery. On average, over-65s earned 26-39% less than all other age groups, including adolescents — a finding that could partially explain their susceptibility to problem gambling and scams."

1 of 225 comments (clear)

  1. Re:They've got money to burn by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll

    Not all people over 65 are rich, you know; fact is, most are quite the opposite.

    Your "soap line" America where the elderly eat dog food is a fiction that exists in the minds of dupes that swallow the lamentations and whining of pressure groups. The US elderly are the wealthiest class of people in the history of the species. They've voted themselves a nice suite of bennies to offset the cost of their fifth wheels, boats and cabins. Today, as in Oct. 1, 2013, they've managed to bridle their grand-kids to fund even more healthcare; a cost they did not pay for their own elders.

    Erratic financial decisions are a symptom of excessive disposable wealth.