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Abstract

Two groups of subjects rated the risks associated with five hypothetical prescription drugs. Subjects were 329 undergraduates whose average age was 19 yr.; 68% were male and most were single and Caucasian. The drugs differed in terms of the number and the relative frequency of occurrence of their side effects. The within-subjects group rated all five drugs in one task, while the between-subjects group rated only one drug. Within-subjects' ratings were higher than between-subjects' ratings for all five drugs. The within-subjects group appeared to be sensitive to differences in the drug stimuli at both low and high frequencies of occurrence whereas the between-subjects group were not at low frequencies.

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Comparison of between-Subjects and within-Subjects Designs in Assessing Perceptions of Risk

Abstract

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