The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

The WAGER Vol. 5(42) - Sweet Talk, Sour Results

For some gamblers, sweet-talking a slot machine seems like a good idea with every pull of the lever or push of the button; however, it might not make much difference. Delfabbro and Winefield (2000) hypothesized that irrational gambling cognitions would be related to the level of reinforcement (i.e., the total amount won during a gambling session) and risk taking (i.e., the mean amount staked on each outcome) in a study of slot machine players (n=20). Sitting at standard slot machines outfitted with a miniature video recorder and a powerful microphone, participants were asked to play the slots as they normally... Read more →

Op-Ed/Editorials - Nevada Supreme Court Orders Casino To Pay Card Counter

Professor I. Nelson Rose Whittier Law School Costa Mesa, CA. On March 9, 2000, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled, 3 - 1, that the Monte Carlo Casino in Las Vegas had to give Richard Chen the $40,400 he won by counting cards at blackjack. The Opinion marks a turning point in the increasingly nasty war between casinos and card counters. But, in the long run, it may not be the good news it appears to be for professional players. Although there were a few isolated earlier skirmishes, the battle began in earnest in 1962, with the publication of Beat The... Read more →

The WAGER Vol. 5(41) - Gambling Mortality

In the 18 years since pathological gambling became an ICD-9 disease code (1980-1997) in the United States, no death certificate has listed gambling as the underlying cause of death. A search of the Compressed Mortality dataset, which is maintained by the Centers for Disease Control on their CDC Wonder site, found 0 deaths for 312.3, the ICD-9 code for impulse-control disorder, which includes pathological gambling (312.31) [1]. However, there have been many attempts in the literature to establish gambling as an indirect cause of death. Two notable attempts have been discussed in previous WAGERs, "Measuring Suicide: Methodology Matters", and "Gambling... Read more →

The WAGER Vol. 5(40) - A New Era of Ideas: The WAGER Calls for Papers

The WAGER is in its fifth consecutive year of publication. Started originally as a weekly fax designed to share new and emerging science with public policy makers, scientists, clinicians and the public, The WAGER has enjoyed remarkable success. The WAGER has matured from its modest beginnings at the Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling and the Division on Addictions at Harvard Medical School to become a widely read and referenced scholarly publication. It has introduced thousands of readers to scientific thinking about gambling-related theory, research, treatment and policy matters. With its initial support from the Andrews Foundation, The WAGER was able... Read more →

The WAGER Vol. 5(39) - Games that Adolescents Play, Louisiana Style

Louisiana is one of many states in America to participate in the expansion of legalized gambling over the past twenty years. As a result, gaming is accessible to the masses. However, gambling is illicit for adolescents. Consequently, it is interesting to examine the "games" of chance that Louisiana adolescents play. Westphal, Rush, Stevens and Johnson (2000) did exactly this when they investigated adolescent gambling. During the 1996-1997 school year, Westphal et al. conducted research with registered Louisiana public and private school students (n=12,066) in grades six through twelve to determine the pattern of gambling activities among this randomly selected cohort.... Read more →