Effect of stress on decision makingStress must be present to ensure our very being. The validity of this statement may be questioned, but it is absolutely true. Stress plays a vital role in how we make decisions (Massa et al, 2002, p. 1). “Problem solving and decision making in demanding real-world situations can be subject to acute stress effects that manifest in various ways depending on the type of decision. Negative effects of acute stress overload include attention tunneling, loss of working memory, and restrictions in long-term memory retrieval, with simple strategies favored over more complex ones. The underlying assumption is that stress can lead to mistakes, poor performance, and poor decisions. However, acute stress does not necessarily always have a detrimental effect on decision-making; rather, it can affect how information is processed. Some of these strategy changes in response to stress are actually adaptive. They reduce and select information processed and processed, in response to high time pressure and reduced cognitive capacity” (Flin, 2004, p. 42). Flin talked a lot about stress and decision-making in this small space. To better understand, in this essay we will expand and analyze the evidence that stress has an effect on the ability to think and make decisions. Stress can be defined in many different ways, but when it comes to decision making, stress can be best defined from a scientific perspective describing the brain's thought process. When the sense organs perceive information, they send it to the thalamus of the brain, which deals with sensory perceptions. The information is then transmitted to the cerebral cortex where the process of conscious thought and decision-making takes place. By starting the process of conscious thought, the cerebral cortex processes large amounts of information and judges which information can be processed automatically without our conscious awareness. and what information should be consciously evaluated. At this stage, emotions, feelings, character traits and behavior are not part of the decision-making process. Thus, the limbic system, directly responsible for these emotions and feelings, is activated by the cerebral cortex. Following the technicality of the stimulus, the stress response begins. Stress...... middle of paper ......uth.Flin, R. (1997). Sitting on the hot seat. Leaders and teams for critical incident management. Klein, G. (1998). Sources of power: how people make decisions. Cambridge: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Massa, P., Watkins, C., Partridge, B (2002). Decision making under stress. Available at: http://web.umr.edu/~bpart/eman313/DMUS.htm [accessed 05/16/05]Walker, K., Nayda, IT, Turner, J. (2003b) Make-Up Your Mind -- Improve your decision-making skills. Available at: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ [accessed 05/16/04] “Thinking and making decisions under stress”. Available at: http://library.thinkquest.org/C0123421/thinking.htm [accessed 05/18/04] Shambach, A. (1996) Strategic Leadership Workshop: “Strategic Decision Making in the Age of Information”, US Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania Thompson, Leigh, L. (2001). The Mind and Heart of the Negotiator, Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall. Walker, K., Torres, NI and Turner, J. (2003a): Make Up Your Mind: Improve Your Decision-Making Skills: Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville. Available on: 18/05/04]