Abstract
The gambling research literature suggests that temporal discounting may be as-sociated with problem gambling, but research has not demonstrated that rates of discounting predict differences in actual gambling behavior. Thirty eight indi-viduals of different ages and backgrounds were recruited to complete several questionnaires, including a delay-discounting task. They were then given $10 in tokens with the opportunity to gamble on a slot machine. How steeply partici-pants discounted the delayed (hypothetical) monetary rewards was a significant predictor of they gambled. Gender, age, and reported annual income were not significant predictors. To our knowledge, these data are the first to demonstrate that temporal discounting may predict differences in actual gambling behavior (vs. self reports). This predictive relationship has implications for both re-searchers and practitioners.
Recommended Citation
Weatherly, Jeffrey N.; Marino, Joanna M.; Marino, Joanna M.; and Ferraro, F. Richard
(2008)
"Temporal Discounting Predicts How People Gamble On a Slot Machine,"
Analysis of Gambling Behavior: Vol. 2:
Iss.
2, Article 19.
Available at:
https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/agb/vol2/iss2/19
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