SLOTS – A Bad Bet
By Anita Bedell
Slot machines are driving the gambling industry nationwide. While slot machines are sometimes touted a "harmless revenue stream" for states struggling to balance their budgets, research has found that slot machines and video slots are the most addictive form of gambling.
Slot machines take in an average of more than $1 billion in wagers every day in the United States. These gambling devices require no skill. People do not have to think; they can push a button, "zone out" and escape from reality.
Behavior modification techniques, such as the use of sights, sounds and smells, "near misses," small, intermittent rewards, and speed, are used in the design of the machines to keep people gambling longer. According to "Bet on It," a feature article in The New York Times Magazine, "The slot machine is brilliantly designed from a behavioral psychology perspective....No other form of gambling manipulates the human mind as beautifully as these machines."
"The typical slot player initiates a new game every 6 seconds. That works out to 10 games per minute, 600 per hour. If the average player bets $2 a spin, that player is wagering roughly $1,200 every hour."
Penny and nickel slots are growing in popularity. Gamblers lost half a million dollars last month on Penny Slots at the casinos in Alton and East Peoria. While you can gamble for a penny a spin, the only way to become eligible for the large jackpot is to wager the maximum per spin — approximately $2.50. Nickel machines are big money makers at casinos. You can bet $4.50 on each spin. At that rate it would cost $54 for each minute of play at a nickel slot machine.
Slot clubs and customer loyalty programs reward repeat customers with "comps" such as meals, hotel rooms, and cash to encourage frequent visits. According to Casino Watch, casinos have the world's most efficient and invasive tracking systems. Every eight seconds massive casino databases track:
Slot machine manufacturers are creating new high-tech slots featuring themes and music from popular television shows. These machines feature touch screens, which speed up the play and encourage larger bets. The idea is to have "fun" while you lose your money. One slot machine manufacturer even received an award for developing a themed slot machine that has audio-assist features and Braille buttons, thus giving the blind and visually impaired the opportunity to gamble on slots.
Coinless slot machines are being installed at Illinois casinos. When a gambler wins, she receives a ticket that can be cashed in or used as a credit to play another slot machine. These coinless slots increase the speed of gambling and the likelihood that people will stay at the machine and gamble away all their winnings. Soon casinos will be using ATM machines on slot machines and smart cards that enable gamblers to withdraw money from their bank accounts into the slots to gamble.
In Illinois, 85 percent of the revenue wagered at casinos comes from slot machines. In Iowa, 96 percent of the money wagered at casinos and racetracks was at slot machines. Legalizing more slot machines to help fund state programs is a bad bet.
Illinois Church Action on Alcohol & Addiction Problems, Volume 67, No. 2, July 2004
Slot machines are driving the gambling industry nationwide. While slot machines are sometimes touted a "harmless revenue stream" for states struggling to balance their budgets, research has found that slot machines and video slots are the most addictive form of gambling.
Slot machines take in an average of more than $1 billion in wagers every day in the United States. These gambling devices require no skill. People do not have to think; they can push a button, "zone out" and escape from reality.
Behavior modification techniques, such as the use of sights, sounds and smells, "near misses," small, intermittent rewards, and speed, are used in the design of the machines to keep people gambling longer. According to "Bet on It," a feature article in The New York Times Magazine, "The slot machine is brilliantly designed from a behavioral psychology perspective....No other form of gambling manipulates the human mind as beautifully as these machines."
"The typical slot player initiates a new game every 6 seconds. That works out to 10 games per minute, 600 per hour. If the average player bets $2 a spin, that player is wagering roughly $1,200 every hour."
Penny and nickel slots are growing in popularity. Gamblers lost half a million dollars last month on Penny Slots at the casinos in Alton and East Peoria. While you can gamble for a penny a spin, the only way to become eligible for the large jackpot is to wager the maximum per spin — approximately $2.50. Nickel machines are big money makers at casinos. You can bet $4.50 on each spin. At that rate it would cost $54 for each minute of play at a nickel slot machine.
Slot clubs and customer loyalty programs reward repeat customers with "comps" such as meals, hotel rooms, and cash to encourage frequent visits. According to Casino Watch, casinos have the world's most efficient and invasive tracking systems. Every eight seconds massive casino databases track:
- Every gambling transaction
- How much you gamble
- Age, sex and name
- Which machine you play
- What you eat
Slot machine manufacturers are creating new high-tech slots featuring themes and music from popular television shows. These machines feature touch screens, which speed up the play and encourage larger bets. The idea is to have "fun" while you lose your money. One slot machine manufacturer even received an award for developing a themed slot machine that has audio-assist features and Braille buttons, thus giving the blind and visually impaired the opportunity to gamble on slots.
Coinless slot machines are being installed at Illinois casinos. When a gambler wins, she receives a ticket that can be cashed in or used as a credit to play another slot machine. These coinless slots increase the speed of gambling and the likelihood that people will stay at the machine and gamble away all their winnings. Soon casinos will be using ATM machines on slot machines and smart cards that enable gamblers to withdraw money from their bank accounts into the slots to gamble.
In Illinois, 85 percent of the revenue wagered at casinos comes from slot machines. In Iowa, 96 percent of the money wagered at casinos and racetracks was at slot machines. Legalizing more slot machines to help fund state programs is a bad bet.
Illinois Church Action on Alcohol & Addiction Problems, Volume 67, No. 2, July 2004
