Researchers have discovered a further link between brain structure and a person’s willingness to take financial risks, which could lead to future treatments for problem gamblers.

The study, published in the journal Neuron under the wordy title of White-Matter Tract Connecting Anterior Insula to Nucleus Accumbens Correlates with Reduced Preference for Positively Skewed Gambles, sought to determine why certain individuals showed “excessive attraction to gambles featuring small chances of winning large amounts.”

Researchers had previously identified two regions of the brain – the anterior insula and nucleus accumbens – which reflect opposite ends of the risk spectrum. The size of the connection between these ‘uh oh’ and ‘oh yay’ regions is different for every individual, which led researchers to wonder if there was a correlation between this connection and an individual’s willingness to take risks.

The study’s authors enlisted volunteers who engaged in a roulette gambling game using real money from inside an MRI chamber. Participants were presented with variable odds for each spin of the wheel, ranging from even odds, to higher odds of winning a small prize, smaller odds of losing big and vice versa. The participants each received $10 with which to wager and were told they could keep any winnings.