Examining Slot Machine Play with Varying Percentages of Losses Disguised as Wins
When playing on multiline slot machine games, small " wins " often amount to less than the original spin wager, which results in a financial loss to the gambler. However, the gambler may feel as if he is winning because these " wins " are paired with audiovisual feedback. The influence of losses disguised as wins was examined to determine if this had an influence on latency, trial ratings, and the number of trials played. Thirty-one participants played a minimum of 50 trials on a simulated multi-line slot machine. The participants were divided into three groups with 16%, 30%, and 46% of trials being losses disguised as wins. Results showed that trial type had a significant impact on latency and rating, as losses disguised as wins fell between wins and losses in terms of latencies and ratings. Clinical implications and future directions are discussed.
The maximum rewards at the minimum price: Reinforcement rates and payback percentages in multi-line slot machines
Pastresearchhasshownthatgamblersfrequentlyusethemini-maxstrategyinmulti-lineslot machines, whereby the player places the minimum bet on the maximum number of lines. Through a detailed analysis and explanation of the design of multi-line slot machine games, weshowthatwhenusingthemini-maxstrategy,thepaybackpercentageremainsunchanged, yet the reinforcement rate is significantly increased. This increase in reinforcement rate is mainly due to spins in which the amount won is less than the amount wagered, which we call losses disguised as wins. We have verified these conclusions by playing an actual slot machine game for 10,000 spins and recording the results. We believe that the high reinforcement rate that results from playing multiple lines on games of this type contributes to their potential addictiveness. We provide three theories for why players use the mini-max strategy and suggest further areas of research.
The multiplier potential of slot machines predicts bet size
The current study extended previous findings that the multiplier potential of a slot machine is related to gambling losses (Sharpe, Walker, Coughlan, Enerson & Blaszczynski, 2005). The multiplier potential of a slot machine was defined as comprising three components; the monetary denomination, the maximum number of pay-lines and the maximum bet multiplication. The relationship between these three components of the multiplier potential and a slot machine’s average bet size was examined in a sample of 323 Australian machines. All machines were operating in gaming venues and expenditure measures were obtained from data recorded by the machines. Results indicated that machine denomination (e.g., 1-cent, 2-cents) and the maximum number of pay-lines were significant predictors of average bet size but no significant relationship was found between the bet multiplication variable and bet size. These results are discussed with regard to established contingencies and reinforcement rates.