Older adults may be more vulnerable to scams than younger adults because of their brain chemistry, according to a pair of studies conducted by University College of Los Angeles’ Social Neuroscience Laboratory and Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center.
The first study found people between the ages of 55 and 84 missed more facial cues signalling untrustworthy behavior than younger adults. Brain imaging conducted during the second study identified a possible explanation for this reaction when it found the anterior insula — a part of the brain that causes people to be cautious — in younger adults had a stronger reaction to the untrustworthy faces than it did in the older adults.
