Engaging in risky behavior can have detrimental consequences for the acting person, for people in her surroundings or even for society at large. In an attempt to mitigate these negative effects, it is crucial to understand the psychological determinants behind risk-taking. Moreover, it is necessary to fit previous and upcoming risk-research into an integrative, measurable and applicable model in order to transfer academic knowledge into effective and reliable practice. This symposium presents new findings on individual, contextual, and group-based factors that can influence everyday risk taking on a behavioral and cognitive level. Within the presented research, risk -taking was assessed both in controlled laboratory experiments through self-reported data and measures on actual behavior (e.g., the Balloon Analog Risk Task) and in the field via observed hand hygiene compliance in hospitals. In the course of the symposium, we will introduce new insights on how previously neglected factors such as glucose consumption and situational variables like exposure to media content influence risk-taking. W e will present findings indicating that the activation of social norms through technological aids might be a promising approach to reduce unsafe habits. Furthermore, a novel, effective and easily applicable method to assess risk-taking behavior in the laboratory is to be introduced. Finally, a new model of risk culture that integrates the results of state-of-the-art risk research from the three main dimensions of influence (i.e., personal, social and structural) will be presented, and its benefits for the implementation of successful behavior-change interventions will be discussed. Our aim for the symposium is to stimulate a debate on previous and future psychological risk research and its potential for improving evidence-based practice.