Risk-taking comparison in adolescent girls with symptoms of anxiety, depression, stress and normal

Abstract

Background: Given the role of psychological problems (e.g. anxiety, depression and stress) in the risk-taking and the importance of this topic in adolescent girls, the main purpose of this study was to study the effect of anxiety, depression and stress on the risk-taking in adolescent girls. Material and Methods: In this causal-comparative designed study, participants were divided in four groups: the control group and groups with symptoms of anxiety, depression and stress. In order to control the effects of demographic variables, all groups were matched for age, field of study and the education level. All participants were assessed with the Iowa gambling test (IGT), the anxiety, depression and stress questionnaires (DASS21); then data were collected. Results: Based on the results, the highest level of risk-taking was found for depression, stress and anxity groups, respectively. In addition, the depression and stress groups had significant higher rate of risk-taking compared to the normal group. Furthermore, results showed the predictive capacity of depression in risk-taking. Conclusion: Due to the high prevalence rate of depression in adolescent girls and its significant association with risk-taking, it is necessary to pay more attention to the risk-taking managements and prevention programs among the adolescents.

Keywords

• Iowa gambling test
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Stress
• Risk-taking
• Adolescent girls