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Abstract

Immersion is a psychological state of focused attention, diminished self-awareness, and altered time perception. It is central to understanding engagement in gambling and sport. This dissertation examines how audiovisual cues shape immersion and behaviour across simulated slot machine gambling (Chapters 3–5) and basketball free-throw performance (Chapter 6). Four experimental studies evaluated effects of cue intensity, outcome type (wins, losses, losses-disguised-as-wins; LDWs), and individual differences (gender, psychological distress, ADHD traits) on immersion, gaze behaviour, and task performance. Findings from Chapter 3 show that moderate (Intermediate), rather than high-intensity (Plus), cues produced the highest immersion, particularly among women, challenging assumptions of a linear cue–immersion relationship. Results in Chapter 4 demonstrates that Spin Initiation Latencies (SILs) were shortest in the Plus cue condition and were further influenced by gender and depressive symptoms. This chapter also replicated the post-reinforcement pause (PRP) effect: SILs were longer following wins compared to LDWs and losses, although unrelated to immersion. Results in Chapter 5 found no preregistered links between immersion and gaze patterns; however, exploratory analyses showed that moderately immersed participants allocated less attention to financial information (credit and win windows) and more to the spinning reels, a pattern more pronounced among men. Chapter 6 revealed no cue-related differences in free-throw performance or immersion, though distress, ADHD symptoms, and physical self-concept correlated with mood and motivation. Together, these findings support the revised Two-Filter Model of Immersion, which posits that environmental cues are filtered through individual cognitive-affective traits to shape immersive experiences. Across both gambling and basketball, immersion emerged from interactions between audiovisual cues and person-level characteristics, such as gender and psychological distress. These insights may inform future research on the structural design of gambling products, digital game features, and risk mitigation strategies for immersive engagement in digital environments.