The adaptation of trust behavior and the association with friendships in adolescents

Being able to adapt one’s trust behavior is essential for social relationships. In the current fMRI study, we first examined adolescents’ ability to adapt trust behavior and the neural mechanisms of trust. Second, we examined developmental differences by comparing young and late adolescents. Third, we examined how positions in a friendship network, derived from social network analysis, relate to trust behavior in the late adolescent group. Seventeen young adolescents (Mage=12.6, SD=0.9, 10 female) and 33 late adolescents (Mage=17.2, SD=0.5, 25 female) played two trust games. Participants received a priori information suggesting that one partner was trustworthy and one partner untrustworthy. In reality, the behavior of both partners was programmed as trustworthy behavior. Results indicated that adolescents adapt their trust behavior when incorrect a priori information was provided, and developmental differences in this ability to adapt trust behavior were found. When incorrect a priori information was provided, late adolescents showed more dlPFC activity when receiving the partner’s feedback compared to young adolescents. Furthermore, late adolescents with less central network positions were more adaptive in their trust behavior compared to late adolescents with more central positions. This study provides insight into how age and social relationships influence trust behavior during adolescence.