A Test of Social Cognitive Theory Reciprocal and Sequential Effects: Hope,Superstitious Belief and Environmental Factors among Lottery Gamblers in Thailand

This study tested social cognitive theory (Bandura, 1986) hypotheses of reciprocal and sequential effects among person, environment variables and behavior. The study examined the impact of hope, superstitious belief and environmental factors on the frequency, amounts of lottery gambling and chasing of particular numbers among Thai lottery gamblers. One hundred and fifty gamblers who visited two temples in Bangkok to search for number clues before buying tickets and 150 gamblers who simply bought lottery tickets from the stalls were recruited for the study. Models were constructed to test the effect of hope, superstitious belief and environmental factors on gambling behavior, and the reciprocal effect of gambling behavior on hope, superstitious belief and environmental factors. Results confirmed the theoretical reciprocal effects. A sequential effect model showing the effects of environmental factors on superstitious belief, hope and gambling behavior was also constructed and hope was found to be the result of superstitious belief. To reduce lottery gambling, the players need to be warned of their distorted hope and the small chance of winning lottery.     

Lottery Gambling: A Review

This paper presents an exhaustive review of the literature on lottery gambling involving numbers games, lotto, and scratch cards. Results provide tentative answers to the question why people buy lotteries, and support the theory of judgment under uncertainty, cognitive theory of gambling, and theory of demand for gambles. Results also indicate some potential addictiveness of this form of gambling. Youths buy different forms of lotteries and the best predictor of their lottery purchases is their parents’ lottery participation. Contrary to the myth that a big lottery win will ruin the winners’ lives, lottery winners tend to be well-adjusted and their life quality seems to improve. Suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Where Lies the Harm in Lottery Gambling? A Portrait of Gambling Practices and Associated Problems

Lotteries are one of the most prevalent forms of gambling and generate substantial state revenues. They are also argued to be one of the least harmful forms of gambling. This paper is one of the first to examine exclusive lottery gamblers and compares their gambling patterns and problems as well other associated risky behaviours to those who are not exclusive lottery gamblers. Data were derived from two large surveys conducted with representative adult samples in France (n?=?15,635) and Québec (n?=?23,896). Participants were separated into two groups: exclusive lottery gamblers (ELGs) and non-exclusive lottery gamblers. Using multivariate analysis, study results reveal that ELGs, who represent two thirds of gamblers, generally exhibit less intensive gambling patterns and are less likely to report other risky behaviours. However, harms associated with moderate risk and problem gambling are found to be concentrated in specific subpopulations for both groups, primarily males, older individuals, and those who report lower income and education level. Given widespread participation in lotteries and concentration of harm within specific subgroups, these findings point to the need for prevention efforts despite the lower levels of harm associated with lottery gambling.     

Gambling among lottery winners: Before and after the big score

The proliferation of state lotteries raises the possibility of increasing pathological gambling because large segments of the population are purchasing tickets. This study, based on a 50% response rate of million dollar winners in Ohio in 1986, indicates lottery winners spend relatively small amounts of money on tickets, did not appreciably increase the amount of money they spent on tickets after winning, and rarely engaged in other forms of gambling before or after they won. These data do not support the assumption that lotteries significantly increase the amount of compulsive gambling in our society, but the subject deserves further exploration.     

Near Miss,Gambler’s Fallacy and Entrapment: Their Influence on Lottery Gamblers in Thailand

Near miss, gambler’s fallacy and entrapment are hypothesized to influence gambling behavior but their individual impact on gambling behavior and their relationships have not been investigated. This study examines the direct and mediated effects of near miss, gambler’s fallacy and entrapment on lottery gambling among Thai lottery gamblers. Two groups of 200 lottery gamblers participated in the study. One group used superstitious methods to search for lottery numbers to bet, whereas the other group simply bought their tickets from lottery stalls. The superstitious group shows higher levels of near miss, gambler’s fallacy, entrapment and lottery gambling. Three models of relationships among near miss, gambler’s fallacy, entrapment and lottery gambling were constructed using LISREL program. The model that shows a direct effect of near miss, and one that shows a mediated effect of near miss fit the data equally. The results confirm a gambler’s fallacy and entrapment as starting points in the theory of cognitive psychology of lottery gambling and the generalization of near miss in gambling motivation.     

The Cognitive Psychology of Lottery Gambling: A Theoretical Review

Despite the current popularity of the UK National, psychologists have tended to neglect lottery play. This review provides a summary of current research findings and outlines the main cognitive theories of gambling as related to non-pathological lottery play. A discussion of various biases and irrational thinking patterns typically found in lottery gambling will be given. These will include the misunderstanding of lottery odds, a susceptibility to the gambler's fallacy and cognitive entrapment, a belief in hot and cold numbers, unrealistic optimism, a belief in personal luck, superstitious thinking, the illusion of control, the erroneous perception of near misses, a susceptibility to prize size and rollover effects, the framing of gambling outcomes and finally, the influence of social factors on lottery play. It is concluded that the psychology of lottery play needs a more unified theory which whilst largely cognitive in emphasis, should also incorporate social motivations such as those inherent in syndicate based lottery play.     

Differences in motivational dimensions across gambling frequency,game choice and medium of play in the United Kingdom

Motivations to gamble in the United Kingdom were examined in relation to gambling preferences and behaviour (gambling frequency, game choice, medium of play). A factor analysis delineated six motivational dimensions for gambling as a leisure activity: socialization through learning, escape, peripheral activity, fun/challenge, socialization through competition, and to win money. The motivational dimensions differed significantly for various gambling frequencies and across choice of games, though not across different media of play. More frequent gamblers chose to gamble for escape and/or fun/challenge purposes, while less frequent gamblers chose to gamble for socialization through learning and peripheral activities. Certain gambling motivations significantly affected decisions to play lottery, roulette, poker, betting and slots, but motivations were not significantly different from each other for bingo, blackjack, fixed-odds betting terminals and football pools. The research extends current knowledge of motivations in the UK and recreational gamblers, introducing a new motivational factor – activities indirectly related to gambling – and emphasizing the relationship between gambling motivations and behaviours. Knowledge of motivations assists casino operators in creating effective marketing strategies and aids lawmakers in better understanding the gambling objectives of their citizenry. These motivational dimensions also serve as a baseline against which problematic motivations can be compared.     

Lotteries in the state fiscal system

Lotteries give states direct revenue from the commercial gambling market. Thirty-two states plus the District of Columbia, encompassing almost three-quarters of the population, operate games, a dramatic spread since the first modern lottery in New Hampshire (1964). These lotteries typically make only a small contribution to state finances, yield revenue that is subject to dramatic annual changes, are expensive to administer, and place relatively greater burdens on low income than on high income individuals. Proceeds are often dedicated to particular functions, but whether lottery proceeds do more than simply substitute for funds that the function would otherwise receive is doubtful. The fiscal limitations of lotteries have not dimmed the public popularity of the games.     

Children's Cognitive Perceptions of 6/49 Lottery Tickets

Recent studies have shown the high prevalence of youth gambling behavior. In particular, lottery ticket purchases among children and adolescents appear to be a highly preferred activity. Despite this fact, most research has focused on the underlying erroneous cognitions used by adults when selecting lottery tickets. This study examines the cognitive perceptions of children while engaged in selecting 6/49 lottery tickets. One hundred sixty-seven children (61 females; 106 males) from grades 3, 5, and 7 were asked to rank pre-selected 6/49 lottery tickets which were classified into a) long series, b) specific patterns, c) non equilibrated numbers, or d) perceived random selections. Children verbalized their rationale for selecting each ticket and were permitted to change the numbers on the lottery tickets they liked least in order to make them to more likely to be the winning ticket. Findings, in general, revealed small developmental differences in the types of underlying cognitive heuristics used by the children. The use of cognitive heuristics underlying the concept of randomness and the use of significant and meaningful numbers was observed to increase as children got older. Children between 9 and 11 were found to have employed the cluster heuristic more frequently than older children, ages 12–13. The results are interpreted in terms of the cognitive developmental changes in children's perceptions and the potential implication for gambling prevention programs are provided.     

Predictability in Pathological Gambling? Applying the Duplication of Purchase Law to the Understanding of Cross-Purchases Between Regular and Pathological Gamblers

The objective of this study is to explore the gambling participations and game purchase duplication of light regular, heavy regular and pathological gamblers by applying the Duplication of Purchase Law. Current study uses data collected by the Australian Productivity Commission for eight different types of games. Key behavioral statistics on light regular, heavy regular, and pathological gamblers were computed and compared. The key finding is that pathological gambling, just like regular gambling, follows the Duplication of Purchase Law, which states that the dominant factor of purchase duplication between two brands is their market shares. This means that gambling between any two games at pathological level, like any regular consumer purchases, exhibits “law-like” regularity based on the pathological gamblers’ participation rate of each game. Additionally, pathological gamblers tend to gamble more frequently across all games except lotteries and instant as well as make greater cross-purchases compared to heavy regular gamblers. A better understanding of the behavioral traits between regular (particularly heavy regular) and pathological gamblers can be useful to public policy makers and social marketers in order to more accurately identify such gamblers and better manage the negative impacts of gambling.     

Gambling Motivations,Money-Limiting Strategies,and Precommitment Preferences of Problem Versus Non-Problem Gamblers

Studies attempting to identify the specific ‘addictive’ features of electronic gaming machines (EGMs) have yielded largely inconclusive results, suggesting that it is the interaction between a gambler’s cognitions and the machine, rather than the machine itself, which fuels excessive play. Research has reported that machine players with gambling problems adopt a number of erroneous cognitive perceptions regarding the probability of winning and the nature of randomness. What is unknown, however, is whether motivations for gambling and attitudes toward pre-session monetary limit-setting vary across levels of gambling severity, and whether proposed precommitment strategies would be useful in minimizing excessive gambling expenditures. The current study explored these concepts in a sample of 127 adults, ages 18 to 81, attending one of four gambling venues in Queensland, Australia. The study found that problem gamblers were more likely than other gamblers to play machines to earn income or escape their problems rather than for fun and enjoyment. Similarly, they were less likely to endorse any type of monetary limit-setting prior to play. They were also reticent to adopt the use of a ‘smart card’ or other strategy to limit access to money during a session, though they indicated they lost track of money while gambling and were rarely aware of whether they were winning or losing during play. Implications for precommitment policies and further research are discussed.     

Self-Reported Losses Versus Actual Losses in Online Gambling: An Empirical Study

Many research findings in the gambling studies field rely on self-report data. A very small body of empirical research also suggests that when using self-report, players report their gambling losses inaccurately. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the differences between objective and subjective gambling spent data by comparing gambler’s actual behavioral tracking data with their self-report data over a 1-month period. A total of 17,742 Norwegian online gamblers were asked to participate in an online survey. Of those surveyed, 1335 gamblers answered questions relating to gambling expenditure that could be compared with their actual gambling behavior. The study found that the estimated loss self-reported by gamblers was correlated with the actual objective loss and that players with higher losses tended to have more difficulty estimating their gambling expenditure (i.e., players who spent more money gambling also appeared to have more trouble estimating their expenses accurately). Overall, the findings demonstrate that caution is warranted when using self-report data relating to amount of money spent gambling in any studies that are totally reliant on self-report data.     

The prevalence of pathological gambling in Galicia (Spain)

Since 1977, when gambling was legalized in Spain, the amount of money spent on it has increased each year. Expenditures on gambling are now more than 3 billion pesetas per year. This paper provides the results of a study on the prevalence of pathological gambling in the Galicia region of northwest Spain, with a representative random sample (N=1,615) from the seven largest cities of Galicia. The prevalence of pathological gambling was 1.7% utilising the DSM-III-R diagnostic criteria. An additional 1.6% were problem gamblers, 0.6% excessive social gamblers and 1% exexcessive gamblers. The results suggest that slot machines are the most addictive form of gambling. Pathological gamblers are homogeneously distributed in the population with the exception that males and upper income family membership are overrepresented. Alcohol and cigarette consumption were higher among pathological gamblers than in the general population.This research was funded by the Service of Mental Health and Drug Abuse of the Health Authority of Galicia (SERGAS, Consellería de Sanidade). The author is grateful to M. José Fuentes, M. Carmen Carro, M. Angeles González, M. Carmen Lorenzo, Ana Pérez, Ana Sáinz, and Beatriz Torres for her help in collecting the data. I also thank Iain Brown for his helpful comments and English revision of this article. Paper presented at the Society for the Study of Gambling, London, November 1991.     

Unregulated Gambling in South African Townships: A Policy Conundrum?

This study was designed to explore the nature of informal or illegal gambling in South African townships, to investigate what motivates people to participate in this form of gambling and what they perceive are the associated benefits and dis-benefits. A series of focus group workshops was conducted with two groups of gamblers, all of whom had experience of some form of township gambling: one group currently lived in townships and the other had previously resided in townships. Gambling for the township residents was a far more frequent activity than for non-township residents and consumed substantially more of their time. The majority of the township residents classified themselves as unemployed, while of those who were unemployed, most people indicated that gambling was a major source of their income; some even described it as their only source of income. The most significant difference between what township and non-township residents expressed as wanting and getting from gambling was that the former indicated quite clearly and unanimously that what they sought and gained from gambling was money. Township residents were far more likely to indicate that they used gambling to balance their budgets than ex-township residents who gambled primarily at casinos. A lottery type game called “Fahfee” is the most widely spread and pervasive form of gambling and was unanimously portrayed as a necessary and beneficial form of support for the poor and unemployed. Lottery and Casino gambling were, in contrast, widely perceived by the township participants as being ‘rigged’ and unfair. Township Dice and cards were perceived as being ‘fairer’ and as allowing punters to be more in control than casino gambling. The downside of township gambling was reported to be high levels of violence, crime and insecurity surrounding, in particular, the game of Dice. There was widespread inability to calculate expected payoffs or odds, and an apparent belief that these were not particularly helpful skills for gamblers. In Fahfee, the reliance on dreams to guide choice of numbers appears to eradicate any interest in the odds, or of playing strategically. The findings of this study are preliminary but have serious policy implications for education and for gambling regulation in South Africa.     

Gambling attitudes and participation: A midwestern survey

In the last few years there has been a tremendous expansion of legalized gambling in the midwest. Multiple forms of gambling are now easily accessible. The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent of gambling in a midwestern state and to assess differences in gambling attitudes and behavior between men and women, in various income groups, living in rural and urban areas. In addition, because of the rapid increase in gambling in this region, respondents were also asked their opinions about legalized gambling. Results indicated that gambling was pervasive in all segments of this midwestern sample; however, men spent more than women and urban residents wagered more than rural residents. The poor spent a greater proportion of their income on gambling than those with middle incomes. Both the gamblers, and many of the non-gamblers, would like to see more gambling opportunities in their communities as most view gambling as a benign recreational activity. One in every ten that gambled, however, did report family problems related to gambling.     

Risk Factors for Gambling Problems: An Analysis by Gender

Differences in problem gambling rates between males and females suggest that associated risk factors vary by gender. Previous combined analyses of male and female gambling may have obscured these distinctions. This study aimed to develop separate risk factor models for gambling problems for males and for females, and identify gender-based similarities and differences. It analysed data from the largest prevalence study in Victoria Australia (N = 15,000). Analyses determined factors differentiating non-problem from at-risk gamblers separately for women and men, then compared genders using interaction terms. Separate multivariate analyses determined significant results when controlling for all others. Variables included demographics, gambling behaviour, gambling motivations, money management, and mental and physical health. Significant predictors of at-risk status amongst female gamblers included: 18–24 years old, not speaking English at home, living in a group household, unemployed or not in the workforce, gambling on private betting, electronic gaming machines (EGMs), scratch tickets or bingo, and gambling for reasons other than social reasons, to win money or for general entertainment. For males, risk factors included: 18–24 years old, not speaking English at home, low education, living in a group household, unemployed or not in the workforce, gambling on EGMs, table games, races, sports or lotteries, and gambling for reasons other than social reasons, to win money or for general entertainment. High risk groups requiring appropriate interventions comprise young adults, especially males; middle-aged female EGM gamblers; non-English speaking populations; frequent EGM, table games, race and sports gamblers; and gamblers motivated by escape.     

Psychological Vulnerability and Problem Gambling: The Mediational Role of Cognitive Distortions

Despite numerous studies demonstrating the influence of cognitive distortions on gambling problem severity, empirical data regarding the role of psychological vulnerability on the latter is limited. Hence, this study assesses the mediating effect of cognitive distortions between psychological vulnerability (personality and mood), and gambling problem severity. It also verifies whether the relationships between these variables differs according to the preferred gambling activity. The sample is composed of 272 male gamblers [191 poker players; 81 video lottery terminal (VLT) players] aged between 18 and 82 years (M = 35.2). Bootstrap analysis results revealed that cognitive distortions mediate the effect of narcissism on gambling problem severity for both groups. The level of depression for VLT players significantly predicted gambling problem severity, both directly and indirectly via the mediating effect of cognitive distortions. Mediation analyses also indicated that narcissism had an indirect impact on problem gambling through cognitive distortions for both groups. These findings suggest that certain vulnerabilities related to personality and mood may influence cognitive distortion intensity and gambling problem severity. In addition, psychological vulnerabilities could differ based on preferred gambling activity. These results may be useful for prevention policies, identifying high risk gamblers and planning psychological interventions.     

Lottery marketing in Québec and social deprivation: excessive exposure,insufficient protection?

In 2008, the Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) undertook a research programme on lotteries. The preliminary qualitative exploratory component enabled us to observe the diversity and ubiquity of lottery advertising to which the vast majority of the population is exposed, including minors and non-players. The aim of a second component was to better comprehend the relationships between exposure to lottery marketing, lottery purchasing habits, attitudes towards gambling, and socio-economic vulnerability indicators. The study's data was collected by a polling firm from a representative sample of adults in the Québec population (n = 2001). Our survey revealed significant links between exposure, gambling behaviour and certain socio-economic indicators: for example, individuals with lower levels of education more often play the lotteries and spend the most on them. In addition, a greater number of people who are less educated and from a low-income household considered that lottery advertising was very or excessively present in their daily lives and that the amount of advertising has increased in recent years. From the perspective of creating healthy environments and protecting vulnerable populations, legislative measures to control the quantity, location and contents of gambling marketing would be promising preventive measures.     

The Impact of Social Desirability Biases on Self-Report Among College Student and Problem Gamblers

The impacts of two types of social desirability bias, self-deceptive enhancement (SDE) and impression management (IM), were examined on self-reports of gambling problems, measured by the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS), and recent gambling behavior, as measured by the Timeline Followback (TLFB) method, in a sample of college students (N = 191), and a sample of treatment-seeking problem gamblers (N = 49). Consistent with our expectations, IM was negatively associated with SOGS scores in both samples. IM was most highly correlated with SOGS scores among treatment-seeking participants (r = −.44, p < .01). Substantial numbers of participants in both samples had high enough IM scores as to call into question the validity of their self-report gambling data, according to published interpretive guidelines. With respect to SDE, we had predicted that it would be positively related to gambling behaviors and gambling-related problems, but found that SDE was inversely related to SOGS scores in both samples. Very little evidence was found for social desirability effects on TLFB scores. Thus, preliminary evidence was obtained that self-report data on gambling problems, but not on gambling behavior (frequency of gambling and amount of time and money spent), may be susceptible to the effects of impression management in both college students and treatment-seeking gamblers.