Discounting, reward and punishment sensitivity and decision-making by midwives

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Discounting, reward and punishment sensitivity and decision-making by midwives Shahna A. Mailey1*, Steve Provost1 and Elaine Jefford2 1 Department of Psychological Science, School of Health and Human Sciences, Southern Cross University, Australia 2 School of Health and Human Sciences, Southern Cross University, Australia Aim: Discounting refers to the effect in which a delay or increased risk has on an individual’s preference for immediate reward. Differences in rates of discounting have been related to several problem behaviours involving impulsivity and risk-taking, such as drug use. However, little is known about whether these factors influence behaviour in other more every-day contexts. One such context is the childbirth environment, where midwives are faced with intricate and difficult decisions in a rapidly changing environment. Method: Participants were 59 female midwives recruited through the Australian College of Midwives. They completed a survey which consisted of the Behavioural Inhibition and Behavioural Activation Scale (BIS/BAS), delay, probability and social discounting tasks, and three clinical childbirth scenarios for which they were asked to judge the quality of clinical reasoning and midwifery practice described. Results: Delay, probability and discounting functions were obtained, and area under the curve was calculated. None of these tasks correlated with the judgements of clinical reasoning or midwifery practice. However, there was a correlation between the BAS and judgements of midwifery practice and clinical reasoning for a number of scenarios, and between the BIS and judgements of midwifery practice in one instance. Social discounting related to years of experience (r = .39). Conclusions: Midwives’ judgements of the quality of decision-making and practice are influenced by their sensitivity to reward and possibly by their sensitivity to punishment, but not to levels of impulsivity and sensitivity to risk as measured by discounting tasks. Changes in social discounting with years of experience may be related to the development of “professional distance” between midwives and their patients, and although it may not impact decision-making, it may influence other aspects of midwives' relationship with mothers. Keywords: Midwives, decision-making, risk, impulsivity, discounting Conference: 15th Annual Psychology Honours Research Conference , Coffs Harbour, Australia, 4 Oct - 5 Oct, 2018. Presentation Type: Research Topic: Abstract for 15th Annual Psychology Honours Research Conference Citation: Mailey SA, Provost S and Jefford E (2019). Discounting, reward and punishment sensitivity and decision-making by midwives. Front. Psychol. Conference Abstract: 15th Annual Psychology Honours Research Conference . doi: 10.3389/conf.fpsyg.2018.74.00023 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 18 Sep 2018; Published Online: 27 Sep 2019. * Correspondence: Miss. Shahna A Mailey, Department of Psychological Science, School of Health and Human Sciences, Southern Cross University, Coffs Harbour, Australia, s.mailey.11@student.scu.edu.au Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Shahna A Mailey Steve Provost Elaine Jefford Google Shahna A Mailey Steve Provost Elaine Jefford Google Scholar Shahna A Mailey Steve Provost Elaine Jefford PubMed Shahna A Mailey Steve Provost Elaine Jefford Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.