title: Effects of the "near miss" and the "big win" on persistence at slot machine gambling.
abstract: This study was conducted to examine the effects of the "near miss," when a player almost wins, and the "big win," a large early monetary gain, on persistence at slot machine gambling. One hundred eighty male and female undergraduates played a 4-wheel computerized slot machine. A 2 x 3 randomized factorial design and an acquisition-extinction procedure were used. The dependent variable, persistence, was defined by the number of trials in the extinction phase. As hypothesized, the near miss had a statistically significant effect on the number of trials in extinction. An inverted U-shaped effect of the near miss showed that the 30% near miss condition led to the greatest persistence, as compared to 45% and 15% near miss conditions. There was no statistically significant effect of the big win. Both cognitive and behavioral theories are discussed as explanations for effects of the near miss.
authors: Department of Psychology, Hofstra University, New Jersey, USA.
authors: J I
authors: JI
authors: Kassinove
authors: M L
authors: ML
authors: Schare
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003071:Cognition; D005108:Extinction, Psychological; D005260:Female; D005715:Gambling / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011897:Random Allocation