Year
2026
Season
Spring
Paper Type
Master's Thesis
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Degree Name
Master of Science in Psychological Science (MSPS)
Department
Psychological and Brain Sciences
NACO controlled Corporate Body
University of North Florida. Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences
Committee Chairperson
Dr. Charles J. Fitzsimmons
Second Advisor
Dr. Sara Davis
Rights Statement
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Department Chair
Dr. Lori Lange
College Dean
Kaveri Subrahmanyam
Abstract
Accurate comprehension of numeric health risks is central to informing risk perceptions, which can later support health decisions. However, risk perceptions do not always strongly predict behavioral intentions, perhaps because people are not confident in their perceptions or comprehension of risk information. Confidence in one’s understanding is often a predictor of behaviors in educational domains, raising the possibility that confidence can similarly shape the link between risk comprehension and health behavior. The primary goal of the present study was to examine whether an individual’s metacognitive confidence in their risk comprehension influences their willingness to engage in a hypothetical medical treatment. We hypothesized that risk comprehension accuracy will predict adults’ behavioral willingness, but that the strength of this effect depends on the individual’s confidence in their comprehension. We expected there to be a stronger alignment between participant risk comprehension and behavioral intentions when they are more compared to less metacognitively confident in their comprehension. To test this, 149 participants answered numeric health problems, reported their confidence in comprehension, and stated their behavioral intentions. Results indicated a significant interaction between risk comprehension and confidence on different hypothetical tradeoff risk problem types, as well as independent effects of accuracy and confidence on these problems. The findings from this research provide additional insights into factors affecting patient behavioral intentions and promote further interdisciplinary discussions amongst cognitive and health domains.
Suggested Citation
Kight, Druanna N., "How does U.S. adults’ metacognitive confidence in risk comprehension influence behavioral intentions?" (2026). UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 1431.
https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/etd/1431
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