Risk Taking Behaviors in Children

Risk-taking behaviors are those which carry an inherently high risk of personal injury to the individual, or the likelihood of damage to that person's overall state of health. Examples of risk-taking behaviors include gambling, alcohol and drug use, unprotected sex, acts of violence and other activities involving a high risk of physical injury. In children, there are many possible causes of risk-taking behavior.

Peer Pressure

• Among school-age children, peer pressure plays a significant role in provoking risk-taking behavior. Children in grades five to eight commonly challenge or "dare" each other to take risks, according to a 1984 article published in the "American Journal of Public Health." The older children in this study, which examined 771 school-age children, reported peer pressure the most often. Roughly half of the dares and challenges urged risk-taking behavior which placed the individual child or others at risk of injury or dangerous habits.

Gender

• The types of risk-taking behaviors in which children engage vary according to gender, particularly as children become older and enter adolescence. Challenges among children in seventh and eighth grade are noted to be strongly differentiated along gender lines. Boys are more likely to be challenged to partake in acts of physical violence, whereas older girls are more likely to be challenged to undertake sexual activity as part of a dare. Both kinds of risk-taking behavior carry inherent risks of physical or emotional harm.

Parental Perceptions

• In 2005, researchers from the University of Kansas Clinical Child Psychology Program carried out a study concerning parental perceptions of a child's temperament and vulnerability and the child's actual risk-taking behavior. The results of the study, published in the "Journal of Pediatric Psychology," indicate that those children perceived by their parents as highly active and relatively less vulnerable were more likely to exhibit risk-taking behaviors in a simulated home environment. This study suggests that such children run a relatively high risk of suffering physical injury in the home.

Psychiatric Factors

• Excessive risk-taking behavior in children may indicate an underlying mental health issue. For example, children suffering from reactive attachment disorder -- a condition related to poor or nonexistent caregiver bonding in early childhood -- may exhibit risky behaviors such as violence to themselves and others, setting fires, and a lack of inhibition in behavior toward strangers. Other conditions and disorders may cause risk behaviors in children -- eating disorders, for example, constitute risk behaviors due to the high risk of physical harm. Consult a doctor if you are concerned about your child's risk-taking behaviors.