Topic: Loss Aversion: A Critical Factor for Responsible Gambling. (Read 669 times)

No matter how disciplined you are, if you are engaging yourself in negative EV (expected value) games, you will lose it all eventually. You being more disciplined only delays the process slightly. Discipline only gives results when combined with profitable (positive EV) endeavors; otherwise, you will get delusional and slowly spiral into a never-ending dark pit of loss, which eventually triggers guilt, stress, and isolation. 


You are right but only few human endeavors are there which do not have money as a focal point. Every thing which offers a shortcut to fortune (no matter how risky/illegal) will always be more appealing and gambling is providing similar path to riches.

 
That saying has some merit but only problem is no matter how great philosophical value a saying carries, it will only add to loss if you are engaging yourself in negative EV endeavors.
Apply that to positive EV endeavors and you will see results for sure.


 
You need to protect capital in any financial pursuit, but you will surely try failing every time only on gambling 

And if you have gambled in past you know very well this inevitable (lose everything chasing loses). Gambling must be considered a fun activity rather then a shortcut to financial freedom.

I can't resist the temptation of bolding out the words in your post. Thanks a lot! It means a lot to me, especially when it comes from a reputed member like you.
You are right on the point about casinos exploiting psychological tendencies to remain in profits, but at the same time, IMO, individuals also do not need to be just mindless moneybags for casinos.

Good perspective on gambling. If you have that 'pay to be able to gamble' approach in back of your mind, you know that you are just paying for fun and thrill not make substantial financial gains. Well said!

Just like drugs .

Nice advice. It would be better if you gambled with friends. Not only would it be more fun and a more social experience, but it would also help you to remain in control as individuals behave more responsibly in groups.

Thanks for finding it worthy of your focus and appreciation. I am much obliged.

Indeed it is. What is more interesting to me is that loss aversion also remains relevant when we are winning. We tend to book wins prematurely. Like cashing out winning bets early, taking insurance in poker, taking profits early in trading, etc. Casinos know this and exploit gamblers both ways.

 

Wow, this is very interesting in the article you posted :

 "But did you know that we feel the pain from losses about twice as much as we feel the joy of equivalent gains?

Loss Aversion

We are roughly 2.5 times more sensitive to losses than we are to gains of similar size. A message framed as a potential loss might therefore be more persuasive.

Think about it. The emotion you feel when you lose a $50 bet is a lot stronger than the joy of finding $50."

I never would have thought of this. And the fact that the emotion of losing a bet of equal value is much stronger than the joy of winning it to me is just so completely wild! That just goes to show you how much emotion comes into play in our decision making & probably why its so devastating when people lose so much.

Well the feeling of losses cannot be underestimated and emphasized because it's a factor that can't be rooted out of gambling so whearas in cause of gambling you ought to win and lose as well but necessarily it depends on how you position yourself in it.cayse if this feelings of losses can be handled I don't think there would be results of addiction,this is why it's best to take up some break in gambling.

True, anyone has to pay to be able to gamble, meaning this is a game that is not free while on the other hand winning is nothing more than a chance and there is absolutely no guarantee to always be able to win every time you play, so I agree with you that in gambling we must prioritize money management by implementing various plans that lead to prevention.

What you said is really based on a fact considering how difficult it is to stay okay when someone is already trapped in a high loss and that is what makes gamblers always take various aggressive actions because of the desire to return the amount of defeat they have experienced before and that is also the reason why gambling must be done with great care.

This was a very informative post especially for those who may care to be concerned with it, because I have seen that the casino is in for a long term business as people just keep falling for that psychology even after all the time they have spent gambling and loosing money over and over again and not recognizing they have gradually become addicted, but for me this feels like an awareness call and if only they will understand it in that manner probably they will gamble better.

To gamble, you need capital so protecting the raw material (the capital) is the most important aspect of gambling. So don't be surprised when people pay more attention at preventing losses than they do to winning. The only time it becomes a problem is when the gambler chase losses which is continuing to play with increased capital in order to recover losses. This does not always end up well because at that point, one would have suspended the ability for critical thinking and wise decision, so making informed selection and decision becomes impossible consequently, the losses will not stop until the fortune have been lost. 

Gambling has a spirit behind it, and that spirit is what drives most gamblers who are not able to subdue and conquer it.
I am a gambler myself and understand perfectly what it like to chase after loses, a couple of times I've gambled and lost my money, a sudden feeling comes upon me, creating in me a very strong desire to deposit more money and continue gambling, this strong desire makes one believe that they are very close to winning the jackpot, and just then, saying like "quitters never win and winners never quit" floods the mind of the gambler, and if the gambler is not able to over this temptation, he or she will likely find him or her self depositing more money to chase after that which is lost...

It rakes good self discipline and strong mental strength and will to not always fall for such to be honest wit you, so most of the time, I really do not blame gambler who end up in such situations.

Money would really be that the main reason on why gambling would really be that still having that kind of relevance and demand due to that kind of aspect on which this is where people would really be that always loving. It will really be always like this and if there were no demand then we would really be seeing that gambling industry would really be just that keeps on booming or increasing in terms of revenue and this is really that something which is really that obvious or really that being written on paper or simply could be seen on stats. Responsible gambling is actually really just that basing up on a certain individual into this kind of aspect on which it will really be always depending on how they would really be treating up because there's no way that you could be able to think up well on what it is and on how you should really be treating it up.
People do messed up their lives due to that wrong approach or treatment towards gambling on which they do really believing that this could really be that able to save them up into their poor situation or
really just that thinking that they could be making out some huge changes about getting rich with it and make constant money on which this is really that a very wrong approach.
Loss or winning condition will really be that triggering out that kind of desperation on which it will really be leading out into disaster if you dont put up yourself on such right thinking or approach into it.
Gamble for fun then you should really be just that fine.

Chasing losses as a way of loss aversion is indeed a psychological trap that a lot of gamblers have put themselves in. This is a very easy way to lose your entire bankroll, even though there's a slim chance of recovering what you have lost its still to risky to try. The moment you get trapped in that cycle of trying to recover what you lost by gambling more you will continue losing. You must learn to inculcate self discipline and control. If you think about it for a second you would realize how dumb it is, how can you lose money in gambling and try to make back that money by gambling more it's absolutely ridiculous but to a gambler it's instinctical.

My bad.
I actually posted the link in one of my post later on;
But you are right I must have included that into my OP (which I just did). Also quoting another reputed member who already touched this;
I just gave a perspective on rake-back/loss-back practices used by casinos in the context of Loss aversion which is my own perspective (might be totally wrong) and that is it.
Thanks for pointing out a genuine concern.

And you think people can take their minds off gambling money? That is not possible, the majority of people gambling do it for the money and it will remain like that forever. Notwithstanding, even as they want to gain from gambling, the fairer/ more feasible advice is for them not to be desperate for it, they can still pursue their quest of the money making and be responsible in gambling, we see that often around us, so it is do able. They only need to neutral their minds and admit that gambling is a luck-based activity that they can never be able to crack, so instead of chasing an impossible mission, they will rather be cautious with this understanding.

I have this consciousness while gambling because a casinos always explore the best mechanism to entrapped gamblers even though they are losing it wouldn't occur to them that it's the right time to set limit for themselves while gambling, overly it's as important as not to be carried by their rake-back/loss-back and their purpose of having that assigned is to keep gambler continue gambling without the subconsciousness of having them deceived in a particular circle to keep gambling and making much deposit with the intention of having them meet with their weekly/months bonuses.

It eventually boils to down to the same point that people with good self control are able to control their emotions and gamble responsibly.
The others are careless and spend more on gambling in the hope of winning more money.
If they really treat it as a fees to play the game then most gamblers won't get addicted to gambling at all.

The point is that gambling is risky and gamblers must understand that and not because the casino traps you but because gamblers allow themselves to be controlled by desire, the desire to win more and the desire to recover losses so that it will be difficult to stop.

We can really gain some good insights from here. Be open with some ideas and they can really help you when it comes to containing your gambling habits.
Responsible gambling is indeed hard to attain especially if you have no other activities in life to dedicate with. But if you have other tasks that you can be busy of, I believe, it would be quite easy to manage your gambling habits.

The concept is quite on point and this is the first time I'm learning about such.
I usually tend to control loss than aiming for profits.
But like we know about behavioral theories they usually end up been subjective due to humans unpredictabilities.
I might fall in the category of the concept doesn't mean all would but majority do and I can see how casinos can gain from this.

The concept of losing is part if a casino and gambler, so the best thing to do as a gambler is that, you will have to make yourself very comfortable with losing to the point that you naturally have no reaction for it since you already know that losing is part of the game as long as you chose to gamble, so when it comes your reaction towards it is what matters most.

Being bias about how a gambler react to both loses and winning is a mental balance thing and if one has an emotional influence on this it will greatly affect they overall reasoning and judgement of things, so for that the subject of how a person react to losing in gambling is subjective to individual make ups.

Loses can actually be avoided if only gamblers will learn to gamble for what it's meant for, which is fun and nothing more. While gambling for fun, one can lose money quite alright, but loses in such in situations and mindset isn't actually a loss, but more of like paying for a service.

People go to the movies and spend their money to watch a movie, how about going to a concert to watch your favorite artist perform your favorite songs, money is spent to achieve this.
Same way also, people can actually spend money to play their favorite games and have fun with it, but unfortunately, most gamblers today careless about the fun in gambling and are much more focused on gambling to make money, this is why the loses count for most gamblers.

Every gambler must have the hope of winning. No gambler is happy with a loss. The attitude of not accepting defeat is indeed the background of gamblers who can gamble emotionally. Gamblers are likely to lose control of the bets they make. This is because of their desire to recover the money they have lost. I see it more in the psychological unpreparedness of gamblers. So they understand the risk of loss in gambling but are unable to control their own emotions to determine limits.