title: A neurochemical approach to valuation sensitivity over gains and losses.
abstract: Prospect theory proposes the hypothesis that people have diminishing sensitivity in valuing increases in the size of monetary outcomes, for both gains and losses. For decision-making under risk, this implies a tendency to be risk-tolerant over losses while being generally risk averse over gains. We offer a neurochemistry-based model of the diminishing valuation sensitivity hypothesis. Specifically, we propose that dopamine tone modulates the sensitivity towards valuation of gains while serotonin tone modulates the sensitivity towards valuation of losses. Consequently, higher dopamine tone would yield a more concave valuation function over gains while higher serotonin tone would yield a more convex valuation function over losses. Using a neurogenetics strategy to test our neurochemical model, we find that subjects with the 9-repeat allele of DAT1 (lower DA tone) are more risk-tolerant over gains than subjects with the 10-repeat allele, and that subjects with the 10-repeat allele of STin2 (higher 5HT tone) are more risk-tolerant over losses than subjects with the 12-repeat allele. Overall, our results support the implications of our model and provide the first neurogenetics evidence that risk attitudes are partially hard-wired in differentiating between gain- and loss-oriented risks.
authors.affiliation: Center for Experimental Business Research and Department of Economics, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Songfa
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.forename: Salomon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Israel
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.forename: Pak C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Sham
authors.forename: Richard P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Ebstein
authors.forename: Soo Hong
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Chew
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001923:Brain Chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D002681:China; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D003657:Decision Making / Q000502:physiology*; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism*; D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D004587:Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008959:Models, Neurological; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012701:Serotonin / Q000378:metabolism*; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; C493214:SLC6A3 protein, human; C493230:SLC6A4 protein, human; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D012701:Serotonin; D004298:Dopamine