Study shows brain waves determine risk-taking propensity while sleeping

New research conducted by the University of Bern in Switzerland and published in the journal 'NeuroImage' suggests that the risk-taking propensity of a person can be determined by brain waves during the night while sleeping. Daria Knoch, who is a neuroscientist stated that during sleep if someone has slow waves over their right prefrontal cortex, they have a higher propensity for risk. Knoch also stated that this brain region is crucial for controlling one's own impulses, among other things.

Slow waves are indicative of high sleep quality. Because the topographical distribution of slow waves in the brain is constant over time, each person has their own neuronal sleep profile. The researchers analysed 54 sleepers, who slept for seven to eight hours on average, to see if this profile revealed anything about a person's risk proclivity. Actigraphs, which detect movement patterns during sleep, were used to find the data.

An Individual's slow-wave profile can only be appropriately read during regular sleep

Lorena Gianotti, who is the study's leader, explained that an individual's slow-wave profile can only be appropriately read during regular sleep. The next stage was to gather sleep data at the participants' residences using portable polysomnographic equipment with 64 electrodes on their heads. Mirjam Studler, a Ph.D. student, and first author stated that as a constellation in sleep research, the undisturbed recording of brain activity during sleep in a familiar environment and the great density of data collected by the 64 electrodes are quite rare and that it allows the participants to sleep naturally and allows the researchers to collect a big amount of data.

It was determined that people with lower slow-wave activity in their right prefrontal cortex are more likely to be at risk than people who have higher slow-wave activity. In the research, the participants had to determine how far they would drive a car knowing that at some time, a wall would appear with which the car would collide in a computer game where they might earn real money.

Risky behaviour can have significant health and financial effects

Risky behaviour can have significant health and financial effects. Researchers claim that gaining a deeper grasp of the mechanisms that underpin the proclivity for risky behaviour is critical. Daria Knoch stated that their findings can be used to develop specific therapies.

(Inputs from ANI)