Open Collections

Zhang, Ke

University of British Columbia

'Chasing' refers to a tendency to increase betting in an effort to recoup prior losses (i.e., 'loss chasing') or to satisfy an increased gambling desire following wins (i.e., 'win chasing'). Chasing characterizes the transition from recreational to problem gambling, but few studies have examined this behaviour systematically. Using online gambling data, I sought a holistic understanding of chasing by capturing between- and within-session chasing behaviour. Further, I evaluated a behavioural intervention to reduce loss chasing. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 examined between- and within-session chasing using naturalistic data from a gambling website (PlayNow.com in British Columbia, Canada). For between-session chasing, average gamblers returned more slowly after a losing session and returned more quickly after a winning session. Within-session chasing depends on game type, chasing measurement (bet amount vs. quit probability), and outcome timeframe (immediate vs. cumulative outcomes). Across most games, loss chasing depended more on timeframe but not measurement, whereas win chasing depended more on measurement. After losing more on the last bet, gamblers staked larger amounts over a longer session, but when cumulative losses mounted, gamblers staked smaller amounts over a shorter session. After winning more, gamblers bet more over a shorter session. Chapter 4 used enrolment in the Voluntary Self-Exclusion (VSE) program as a proxy for likely gambling problems. While conventional assessments of gambling problems focus on between-session loss chasing, it did not differentiate VSE gamblers from Non-VSE gamblers. Instead, these groups differed in their within-session loss chasing tendencies. Therefore, future research aiming to identify high-risk gambling patterns should also consider within-session behavioural markers. Chapter 5 recruited gamblers from the survey platform, Prolific, and examined the effectiveness of a novel ‘cashing out’ procedure in alleviating loss chasing. In non-problem gamblers, the cashing out manipulation significantly lowered the amount wagered, aligned with the realization effect. There was no interaction between the cashing-out condition and the gambling group, although the cashing-out procedure was not statistically significant in the at-risk or problem gambling groups. These findings provide future directions for identifying gambling problems based on behavioural tracking data, and present proof of concept data for a new digital harm reduction tool.

Text

2023-04-14

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/84210

Psychology

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/