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An Uncertainty Management Perspective on Long-Run Impacts of Adversity: The Influence of Childhood Socioeconomic Status on Risk, Time, and Social Preferences

Amir · Power & Equity, Trust & Interpersonal · Journal of Experimental Social Psychology · 2018 · Open access

Four large samples (N=4,714) testing an uncertainty management framework for understanding how childhood deprivation shapes adult preferences. Found that childhood deprivation uniquely predicts greater risk-aversion and prosociality, supporting the argument that early adversity produces strategies that minimise the downside costs of uncertainty. Proposes 'avoid uncertainty if you can't afford the bad outcome' as the operative heuristic — directly relevant to why those from lower-SES backgrounds show greater interpersonal risk-aversion at work.

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