What counts as “risky” in the modern world?
For decades, behavioral scientists have studied risk by focusing on memorable, dramatic behaviors—gambling addictions, extreme sports, drunk driving, unprotected sex, and substance abuse.
But nobody had systematically asked ordinary people: What decisions feel risky to you in your actual life? Researchers at the University of Zurich decided to find out what that answer was. A just-published paper (November 2025) reveals findings that surprised them.
Responses from 4,380 people in Switzerland revealed a massive gap between expert assumptions and lived experience.
The researchers expected to hear about adventure-seeking. Instead, they heard overwhelmingly about work.
Jobs Are the Biggest Realm of Risk
The study results indicated that 32 percent of the risky choices people reported were work-related. Career was the largest risk category by far, outpacing every other domain of life.
The most frequently reported risky choices were:
- Should I accept a new job? (229 people)
- Should I quit my current job? (211 people)
- Should I invest money? (148 people)
- Should I drive a car? (133 people)
- Should I become self-employed? (130 people)
- Should I buy a house? (96 people)
Translation: Three of the top five risky choices were purely…
