Figure 2From: Immediate gain is long-term loss: Are there foresighted decision makers in the Iowa Gambling Task?Mean number of cards chosen in blocks. 100 card selection trials were grouped into five blocks, each comprising 20 trials. The three factor (repeated measurement) ANOVA (Gain-loss frequencies (gain vs. loss) × Values (± 200 vs. ± 100) × Blocks (1 to 5)) indicated a significant main effect for gain-loss frequencies (F (1, 47) = 29.44, p < .01) and values (F (1, 47) = 9.02, p < .01), but not for blocks (F (1, 47) = 0.00, p = 1.00). Furthermore, significant interactions existed between gain-loss frequencies and blocks (F (4, 44) = 3.03, p < .05) as well as three factors (F (4, 44) = 5.19, p < .01); but non-significant interactions existed between gain-loss frequencies and values (F (1, 47) = 1.90, p = .18); values and blocks (F (4, 44) = 0.99, p = .43). These results indicate a clear preference for the pooled decks A and B ("bad" decks) over the pooled decks C and D ("good" decks) from the beginning. Subjects seem to be guided by gain-loss frequencies and appear sensitive to the gain-loss structure gradually. No cross-over or significant learning curve exists for the high-frequency gain (A, B) and high-frequency loss (C, D) decks under this condition (100 trials) in the Soochow Gambling Task.Back to article page