When a pentagon (or any geometric shape) is dilated by a scale factor less than 1, the lengths of its sides decrease. The area, however, is affected by the square of the scale factor.
If the scale factor is \( k \) (where \( 0 < k < 1 \)), then the area of the new pentagon will be \( k^2 \) times the original area. This means that the area decreases, but it decreases by the square of the scale factor. Since \( k^2 < k \) for \( 0 < k < 1 \), the area decreases more slowly than the lengths of the sides.
Based on this reasoning, the correct answer is:
The area decreases, but less rapidly than the lengths of the sides decrease.