For risk takers, defeat not as harsh

Last week, Canada held national elections, and many resulted in stunning upsets. Defeat is rejection at its extreme, psychologists say, and when it occurs in public, few — even those who may have had a premonition of what was coming — are prepared for its impact. Yet among risk takers, the blow of defeat may not be as harsh. Risk-takers have a high tolerance for uncertainty and the whims of fate, a taste for excitement, self-confidence, creativity and high energy. "Failure is not usually fatal or even a setback for risk-takers," said Temple psychologist Frank Farley.
May 7, 2011 | Ottawa Citizen