Time for a little fun. I know you’ve asked yourself this question: why do people engage in those dangerous extreme sports like hang gliding, bungee jumping and rock climbing? Would you believe it might have something to do with neurotransmitters and something called Monoamine Oxidase? In this video episode we learn about Sensation Seekers. Along the way I discuss how SSRI’s (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) function in the synapse. Come along for the ride.
Resources On Extreme Sports
- Personality Psychology website at Arcadia. This site has a lot of great resources on personality. Highly recommended.
- Take the sensation-seeking scale here.
- Lots of resources on personality can be found at the Personality Pedagogy site.
- Good article here from the HealthyPlace website on monoamine oxidase and it’s role in depression.
- A nice overview of Sensation Seeking can be found in Motivation Theories and Pinciples 5th edition by Robert Beck.
- Biopsychology by John Pinel has some excellent illustrations and extensive explanations on how neurotransmitters work.
- Interesting in Time Magazine online called, Why We Take Risks: It’s the Dopamine.
Media Resources for this Episode
- Thanks to the band 3Kisses for allowing me to use “It’s Not About You” for the soundtrack to my extreme snowmobile chase.
- Extreme Bungee on YouTube.
- Here’s the YouTube video showing the extreme hang gliding video featured in this episode.
- The snowmobile chase machinima was made with the video game Stuntman: Ignition
- Here’s a link to one of the many machinima sites.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
It was very interesting to learn that the reason some people love the thrill of bungee jumping or sky diving was due to a certain chemical balance in the brain. It makes me wonder if the reason people make certain decisions in life, enjoy certain music, or have have certain hobbies is due to the release or exchange of a molecule or molecules. Does this initially mean that people are only unique individuals due to what’s going on in the chemical states of their minds? I also found it insteresting that sensation seeking could mean just wanting to experiencing new things such as simply exploring a new city. This video gave alot of really helpful pointers on how the mind works and why certain people act the way they do.
The arousal theory made a lot of sense to me that there were either higher or lower levels of sensation seekers. It also made sense that the people who score higher in sensation are the ones who smoke, drink, gamble, and overall take higher risks in today’s society. However, it did surprise me that a more “exciting lifestyle” was not just about thrill and adventure, but also, it was about experience, disinhibition, and boredom susceptibility. It was also surprising to find out that due to different levels of dopamine in our brain, humans have different levels of sensation. If someone has a lower level of dopamine, who has always lived a more relaxed lifestyle, and then gets divorced, why do they end up scoring higher on the sensation scale than those who are single or married? It must not all be biological.
It’s definitely not all dopamine-related, but it is cool to think that some of our “personality” is influenced by brain chemicals. Sure helps to explain why some of us like to take risks (jump out of planes, etc.) and others wouldn’t dream of doing stuff like that.