Final answer:
Fear drives action differently across age groups: it promotes risk-taking in teenagers possibly due to evolutionary benefits; in younger children, it can be shaped by media exposure; and in adults, it often results in protective behavior.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the context of the Commonlit article 'Fear Prompts Teens to Act Impulsively', fear acts as a powerful motivator that can lead to impulsive actions across different age groups, including teenagers, younger children, and adults. For teenagers, fear can drive them towards risk-taking behavior. Some scientists theorize that adolescents might have an evolutionary drive to take risks which aids in their development towards independence and starting families of their own. Emerging adulthood is a term used to describe the phase of life between 18 and mid-20s, when individuals are still in a stage of exploring their identities, especially in the realms of work and love.
For younger children, exposure to violence in media, such as video games and movies, may instill a sense of fear and can shape their perceptions and actions. In terms of adults, fear might prompt a protective or preventive response, as adults are generally considered to be more responsible for the safety and health of their offspring, which can be seen in the appeal to a sense of guilt used in certain messages aimed at preventing harmful behaviors.
Risk-taking during adolescence can also be understood by examining the function of the adolescent brain. Brain development studies using fMRI scans show that while the neural reward center of the brain is active during risk-taking, adolescence might not necessarily correlate with heightened impulsivity compared to other age groups.