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An international team of researchers has found a possible link between a parasitic infection and a risky commercial behavior. In their article published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B the group describes an experiment they conducted to test possible behavioral changes due to parasitic infections of Toxoplasma gondii and what they have find.
The parasite Toxoplasma gondii is unicellular and, as a group, has infected more than a quarter of the world's population. Fortunately, most people have very few, if any, symptoms that tend to report headaches or flu-like symptoms. People usually become infected with the parasite by ingesting raw or undercooked meat or by handling cat feces (cleaning litter boxes). In this new effort, the researchers noted that rodents infected with the parasite tend to experience behavioral changes, such as engaging with cats, rather than fleeing. They wondered if it was possible for people infected with the virus to also experience behavioral changes.
To find out, they took saliva samples from 1,500 student volunteers. They also collected 200 samples of people attending a seminar for potential entrepreneurs. After testing the samples, the researchers found that 22 percent of those tested had been exposed to the parasite. They also found that among those tested, those who were infected were 1.4 times more likely to be business majors. They also found that among those who attended the seminar on entrepreneurship, those who had been infected were 1.8 times more likely than those who had not been infected to have already started their own company.
The researchers note that starting a business is considered to be a very risky behavior – most of them fail and suffer economically. As evidence of such infections causing risky behavior in people, they cite the fact that people who had been infected with the parasite were more likely to engage in such a risky pursuit.
Researchers plan to continue their research, looking for evidence of other behavioral changes such as increased conservatism in some people. They would also like to know if infections are more common among people who start successful entrepreneurial ventures versus those who fail.
Learn more:
A new twist on how parasites invade host cells
More information:
Stefanie K. Johnson et al. Risky business: liaisonToxoplasma gondiiinfection and entrepreneurial behavior between individuals and countries, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (2018). DOI: 10.1098 / rspb.2018.0822
Abstract
Disciplines such as business and economics often rely on the hypothesis of rationality to explain complex human behaviors. However, growing evidence suggests that the behavior may be influenced simultaneously by infectious microorganisms. The protozoan Toxoplasma gondii infects approximately 2 billion people worldwide and has been associated with behavioral alterations in humans and other vertebrates. Here, we integrate primary data from students and professionals with national information on cultural attitudes towards business to test the hypothesis that T. gondii infection influences individual entrepreneurial activities and the Scale of society. Using a saliva-based test, we found that students (n = 1495) who tested for IgG positive for exposure to T. gondii were 1.4 times more likely to be exposed. be major in business and 1.7 times more likely to focus on management and entrepreneurship. other accents related to business. Among professionals participating in entrepreneurial events, T. gondii positive individuals were 1.8 times more likely to have started their own business than other participants (n = 197). Finally, after synthesizing and combining national databases on T. gondii infection of the last 25 years with the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor of entrepreneurial activity, we found that the prevalence of the disease was high. infection was a positive and consistent predictor of entrepreneurial activity at the national level. regardless of whether the previously identified economic covariates were included. Countries with higher infection also had a lower fraction of respondents citing the "fear of failure" in inhibiting new business ventures. Although correlational, these findings highlight the link between parasite infection and complex human behaviors, including those that are relevant to business, entrepreneurship, and economic productivity.
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