Imagine that you are given the chance to play a gamble based on the toss of a fair coin. The coin is tossed in the air and you call "HEADS" or "TAILS". If you are right, you get the better of two possible outcomes. If you are wrong, you get the worse outcome. On each trial below you will see two outcomes that might happen on each trial. Each gamble is a 50-50 chance to win one outcome or the other.
Each outcome is equally likely, because the coin has an equal chance of coming out HEADS or TAILS.
We are studying how people decide which gambles they want to play, so many different kinds of trials will be presented. Some examples of the gambles presented are discussed below.
For example, look at the sample trial below:
S1. LOSE $30 or WIN $80 Dislike Very Much Like Very Much
The gamble above, S1, gives you a fifty-fifty chance to either win $80 or to lose $30. If you call the coin correctly, you get $100, and if you are wrong, you lose $30. Would you like to play this gamble? Many people would like to play it, because you have a 50% chance to win $80 and the possible loss is only $30; but others would prefer not to play this gamble. If you would like to play this gamble, you should click a button to the right of the center. If you would rather not play this gamble, you should click a button to the left of the center, and if you would be equally happy either playing it or not, click the center button.
The next gamble is a 50-50 chance to either WIN $100 or to LOSE $100. Notice that LOSE $100 has been set in RED, to help you see that it is a chance to LOSE money. Would you like to play this gamble? You have a 50% chance to WIN $100. If you would like to play this gamble, click a button to the right of the center, to indicate how much you would like to play it. Maybe you would rather NOT play this gamble because you might LOSE $100. If you would rather NOT play the gamble, click a button to the left of the center to indicate how much you would dislike playing this gamble.
S2. LOSE $100 or WIN $100 Dislike Very Much Like Very Much
The worst gamble in this study is shown below, in which you would either LOSE $100 or WIN $10, because the most you can lose in this study is $100 and $10 is the smallest amount to win.
S4. LOSE $100 or WIN $10 Dislike Very Much Like Very Much
The best gamble in the study is shown below, in which you either WIN $100 or LOSE $10. Most people would like very much to play this gamble, because you might win $100 and can't do worse than BREAK EVEN; in this case, you can click the button to the far right.
S5. LOSE $10 or WIN $100 Dislike Very Much Like Very Much
The next case gives you a chance to win $60, but you might lose $20. Would you like to play this gamble? Click a button to show how much you would like to play this gamble.
S6. LOSE $20 or WIN $60 Dislike Very Much Like Very Much
This gamble gives you a chance to win $40 or lose $40. Would you like to play this one?
S7. WIN $40 or LOSE $40 Dislike Very Much Like Very Much
Imagine that when you have finished the experiment below, two trials will be chosen at random from the ones below, and you will play the gamble to which you gave the higher rating. You would then play your preferred gamble of these two, and you would either win or lose money according to how the gamble came out when the coin was tossed. So, you should give higher ratings to gambles you would rather play, and give lower ratings to those you prefer NOT to play. Click buttons farther to the right for those you most want to play, fartherest to the left for those you dislike the most, and click buttons closer to the center for those you feel less strong about.
You are asked to read each trial, think about the gamble and decide if you want to play it, and then decide which button to click, depending on how strongly you want to play or to avoid the gamble. If you would LIKE to play the gamble very much, click buttons on the right, and if you DO NOT WANT to play the gamble, click buttons to the left. If you are neutral to a gamble--indifferent whether you play it or not, click the button in the middle of the scale. Please read these instructions again before you go on to the trials below.
Female Male
CSUF Students: To get credit for the SONA system, please complete the next section, so that we can give you credit.
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