| dc.description | The main goal of the thesis was to explore the development of complex decision-making in children using a modified version of the Iowa Gambling task. This task assesses the individual's ability to make advantageous decisions over time, given conflictual rewards and losses (Bechara et al., 1994). The primary goal of the first experiment was to create a modified version of the Iowa task in relation to three age groups: 3-, 4-, and 6-year-olds. The results of this experiment indicated that there were age and sex differences in making decisions, with females outperforming males. The primary goal of the second experiment was to explore further decision-making in the pre-school period. A related goal was to explore the association of complex decision-making with performance on a simpler decision-making task. Finally, association of decision-making with temperament characteristics was also explored. This experiment confirmed a developmental effect in decision-making ability, indicating that decision-making improves over the pre-school period. The findings also showed that performance on this task was linked to temperament characteristics. The correlation of the gambling task and simpler decision-making task approached significance for the younger children. The primary goal of the third experiment was to investigate the effect of altering the reinforcement contingencies on the Iowa Gambling task. The results indicated that altering reinforcement contingencies had no effect on age differences, but had differential effects on males and females. Finally, the goal of the fourth experiment was to explore complex decision making in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Analysis of this experiment indicated a significant difference between this clinical group and an age and sex matched control group, with the control group choosing significantly more from the advantageous decks. The results of these four studies converge to indicate a pattern of improvement in decision-making during childhood. | en_US |
