New research suggests a connection between one’s brain structure and tolerance of risk. The new study, conducted by lead author Dr. Agnieszka Tymula, economist at the University of Sydney, has potentially identified the first stable ‘biomarker’ for financial risk attitudes.

Dr. Tymula and researchers used a whole-brain analysis to find that the grey matter volume of an area in the right posterior parietal cortex was greatly predictive of individual risk attitudes. Both men and women who had higher grey matter volume within this region of the brain showed less risk aversion.

Dr. Tymula said in a statement, “Individual risk attitudes are correlated with the grey matter volume in the posterior parietal cortex suggesting existence of an anatomical biomarker for financial risk-attitude.”

Accordingly, tolerance risk “could potentially be measured in billions of existing medical brain scans.”

Dr. Tymula notes that additional research needs to be conducted to determine if structural changes in the brain may lead to changes in risk attitude or whether an individual’s risky choices alter the individual’s brain structure, or both.

Dr. Tymula said, “The findings fit nicely with our previous findings on risk attitude and ageing. In our Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2013 paper we found that as people age they become more risk averse.”

She continued, “From other work we know that cortex thins substantially as we age. It is possible that changes in risk attitude over lifespan are caused by thinning of the cortex.”

Findings from the study are published in the September 10 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.