| Title |
An Analysis of Switching and Non-switching Slot Machine Player Behaviour
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Journal of Gambling Studies, August 2012
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s10899-012-9329-6 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Ewan Coates, Alex Blaszczynski |
| Abstract |
Learning theory predicts that, given the repeated choice to bet between two concurrently available slot machines, gamblers will learn to bet more money on the machine with higher expected return (payback percentage) or higher win probability per spin (volatility). The purpose of this study was to investigate whether this occurs when the two machines vary orthogonally on payback percentage and volatility. The sample comprised 52 first year psychology students (mean age = 20.3 years, 20 females, 32 males) who had played a gaming machine at least once in the previous 12 months. Participants were administered a battery of questionnaires designed to assess level of knowledge on the characteristics and operation of poker machines, frequency of poker machine play in the past 12 months, personality traits of impulsivity and capacity for cognitive reflection, and gambling beliefs. For the experimental task, participants were instructed to play on two PC-simulated electronic gaming machines (EGMs or slot machines) that differed on payback percentage and volatility, with the option of freely switching between EGMs after a practice phase. Results indicated that participants were able to easily discriminate between machines and manifested a preference to play machines offering higher payback or volatility. These findings diverged from previous findings of no preference for play on higher payback/volatility machines, potentially due to of the current study's absence of the option to make multi-line and multi-credit bets. It was concluded that return rate parameters like payback percentage and volatility strongly influenced slot machine preference in the absence of betting options like multi-line bets, though more research is needed to determine the effects of such betting options on player distribution of money between multiple EGMs. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 3 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 1 | 33% |
| Unknown | 2 | 67% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Scientists | 1 | 33% |
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 1 | 33% |
| Members of the public | 1 | 33% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 60 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | 1 | 2% |
| Unknown | 59 | 98% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 10 | 17% |
| Student > Bachelor | 8 | 13% |
| Researcher | 7 | 12% |
| Student > Master | 7 | 12% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 4 | 7% |
| Other | 13 | 22% |
| Unknown | 11 | 18% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Psychology | 19 | 32% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 10 | 17% |
| Social Sciences | 7 | 12% |
| Business, Management and Accounting | 5 | 8% |
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 1 | 2% |
| Other | 4 | 7% |
| Unknown | 14 | 23% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 2. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 26 November 2013.
All research outputs
#16,046,765
of 25,373,627 outputs
Outputs from Journal of Gambling Studies
#627
of 989 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#114,816
of 186,126 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Journal of Gambling Studies
#3
of 4 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,373,627 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 34th percentile – i.e., 34% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
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