The balloon analogue risk task (BART) differentiates smokers and nonsmokers.

TLDR

Researchers aim to identify personality variables such as risk taking to explain why people continue to smoke despite health risks. The study compared the Bechara Gambling Task and the Balloon Analogue Risk Task to determine which better differentiates smokers from nonsmokers. Participants completed both tasks and provided self‑report impulsivity and sensation‑seeking questionnaires for comparison. BART performance, but not BGT, distinguished smokers from nonsmokers, and logistic regression showed that only BART scores and sensation‑seeking uniquely predicted smoking status.

Abstract

In trying to better understand why individuals begin and continue to smoke despite the obvious health consequences, researchers have become interested in identifying relevant personality variables, such as risk taking. In this study, the authors compared the ability of 2 behavioral measures of risk taking, the Bechara Gambling Task (BGT) and the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), to differentiate smokers and nonsmokers. Self-report measures of impulsivity and sensation seeking were taken for comparison with the 2 behavioral risk-taking tasks. Results indicate that behavior on the BART, and not the BGT, was related to smoking status. Further, when considered in a logistic regression analysis, only the Sensation Seeking total score and the BART score contributed uniquely to the differentiation of smokers and nonsmokers.