The elderly have long been especially susceptible to fraud, but why? A paper suggests one reason: Getting a "gut feeling" about people's honesty is harder for the aged. A region of the brain seems to be at fault. Researchers showed photos of faces preselected to look trustworthy, neutral or untrustworthy to young adults and seniors. The untrustworthy faces were judged more trustworthy by the elderly. In a paired study involving brain scans, young adults showed activation of the brain's anterior insula when rating faces—and especially untrustworthy faces. But the elderly showed little anterior-insula activation. Among other things, the anterior insula helps the brain understand visceral cues—gut feelings.
"Neural and Behavioral Bases of Age Differences in Perceptions of Trust," Elizabeth Castle, Naomi I. Eisenberger, Teresa E. Seeman, Wesley G. Moons, Ian A. Boggero, Mark S. Grinblatt and Shelley E. Taylor, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
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