Sympathetic Magic and Gambling: Adherence to the Law of Contagion Varies with Gambling Severity

Abstract

This study assessed adherence to the law of contagion by 118 undergraduate students (39 males). Participants were students who played a slot machine game after viewing a prior player who seemed to be winning ("lucky" condition) or losing ("unlucky" condition). Adherence to the law of contagion was assessed by the selection of the coin holder used by a "lucky" prior player and the avoidance of the coin holder used by an "unlucky" prior player. Contagion varied directly with scores on the Problem Gambling Severity Index and scores on the Luck/Perseverance subscale of the Gamblers' Belief Questionnaire (Steenbergh et al. in Psychol Addict Behav 16(2):143-149, 2002). Gamblers high in problem severity chose the "lucky" coin holder and avoided the "unlucky" coin holder significantly more than gamblers low in problem severity. Problem gamblers, therefore, exhibit evidence of magical thinking related to the transfer of a "lucky" essence. The same was the case for individuals with a strong level of belief that sheer continuation in gambling (luck perseverance) results in success and for individuals who believe that luck is a personal rather than a situational characteristic. All three variables (problem gambling severity, luck perseverance and personal luck) had direct effects on behavior reflecting irrational magical thinking. A belief that knowledge or skill has a role in successful gaming was unrelated to magical thinking. These findings suggest potential foci for cognitive interventions with problem gamblers and those with non-skill based evidence of irrational thinking.

Magical thinking and decision‐making strategies among late adolescent regular gamblers: A mediation model

“…Johnston and Driskell, 1997), as in this context did not mediate like the other dysfunctional examined decision making styles, the maladaptive relationship between magical thinking and pathological gambling. Our results are in line with massive research (Shvetsov, 1999; Teed, Finlay, Marmurek, Colwell, & Newby‐Clark, 2012) according to which magical thinking is a crucial characteristic of high gambling severity by which pathological gamblers tend to discount the ability to think or act in a logical and “adult” manner, preferring to procrastinate or avoid decisions (i.e., not paying a greater cost in the present, even when it leads to a better deal in the long run). The results of this study highlight how, far from being merely a form of typical thought of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia or borderline and schizotypal personality disorders (Wiltink et al, 2015), magical thinking can be regarded as a characteristic of people adopting inadequate decision‐making strategies.…”

The role of affect-driven impulsivity in gambling cognitions: A convenience-sample study with a Spanish version of the Gambling-Related Cognitions Scale

“…For example, the term the gambler’s fallacy refers to the cognitive distortion that a win will follow a sequence of losses even though outcomes occur independently of each other and are therefore unpredictable ( Delfabbro, 2004 ). Similarly, gamblers may be of the belief that they themselves are able to influence gambling outcomes through the use of strategies, rituals, or lucky charms [Illusion of control (IC); Teed, Finlay, Marmurek, Colwell, & Newby-Clark, 2012 ]. Other cognitive distortions involve the over-interpretation of signals of gambling skills, attributional errors, selective memory, and probabilistic bias ( Cantinotti, Ladouceur, & Jacques, 2004 ; Goodie, 2005 ; Ladouceur & Sévigny, 2005 ).…”

Why Some Sports Bettors Think Gambling Addiction Prevented Them from Becoming Winners? A Qualitative Approach to Understanding the Role of Knowledge in Sports Betting Products

“…As Stark (2014) noted, cognitive biases, the gambler's fallacy, and the illusion of control are common to all the pathways theorised in the integral pathways model of problem gambling (Blaszczynski & Nower, 2002), which means they almost always play a role in developing the disorder. However, problem gamblers resort more often to luck than non-problem gamblers (which is viewed by them as a personal characteristic), as well as magical thinking as explanatory mechanisms of game outcomes (Teed, Finlay, Marmurek, Colwell, & Newby-Clark, 2012). Similarly, problem gamblers tend to be more irrational in their perceptions, as indicated by stronger beliefs in the role of skilful play in chance activities, and that gambling is a potentially profitable activity (Delfabbro, Lahn, & Grabosky, 2006).…”