Explanations for Gambling Addiction Flashcards
Forming the Addiction: Social Learning Theory
A gambling addiction can form due to observing a role model and being rewarded for gambling behaviour.
Reward could be: enjoyment in gambling, occasional wins.
Observation doesn’t need to be direct, could be through newspapers, etc.
e.g. hearing about someone winning big on lottery could make someone more likely to gamble: gain same reward.
Maintaining the Addiction: Operant Conditioning
Both positive and negative reinforcement explains gambling addiction.
Gambling provides positive reinforcements: reward of winning money, excitement from gambling.
-Gambling likely to be repeated to gain same reward.
Gambling provides negative reinforcements: distracts individual from unpleasant feelings and anxiety.
-Gambling repeated to avoid negative consequences of anxiety.
What’s Partial Reinforcement?
Where a behaviour’s reinforced only some of the time.
Person’s rewarded every time, may become bored, partial reinforcement enables a person to develop addiction due to reinforcements being limited to some of the time, not consistently, making gambling more exciting as individual’s unsure when they’ll next win, so behaviour doesn’t extinguish even when wins stop.
What’s Variable Reinforcement?
Type of partial reinforcement where behaviour’s reinforced an unpredictable amount of times.
More reinforcing as it’s highly unpredictable and exciting therefore leads to stronger, more persistent gambling behaviour.
AO3: Learning Theory of Gambling Addiction: Research to Support
P: Parke and Griffiths.
E: Research supports idea that gambling’s reinforced due to money, thrill, excitement.
E: Sensation of a ‘near miss’ as well makes it reinforced even if there’s a loss.
L: Supports idea of partial and variable reinforcement making gambling highly addictive due to unpredictability of winning and associated excitement.
AO3: Learning Theory of Gambling Addiction: Strength: Prac Apps
P: Has practical applications.
E: Because principles of theory that addiction’s caused by pleasant associations between gambling and excitement.
E: led to behavioural interventions, e.g. aversion therapy: gambling’s associated with negative stimulus rather than feeling of pleasure.
L: Important part of applied psychology, helps treat gambling addictions in the real world.
AO3: Learning Theory of Gambling Addiction: Criticism: Environmental Determinism
P: Environmentally deterministic.
E: States individual’s controlled by reinforcements that cause behaviour e.g. person rewarded for gambling by feeling of euphoria or occasional win, gamble again to get same reward.
E: Neglects role of free will and choice individual has e.g. person may not want to gamble due to financial losses.
L: Learning theory limited, may not be full explanation of gambling behaviour.
What’s the Cognitive Approach?
Sees addictive behaviour as a result of cognitive distortions/ faulty thought processes.
What’s Cognitive Bias?
Where a person’s thinking, memory and attentional processes are faulty leading an individual to make irrational judgements and poor decisions.
Biases influence how gamblers think about their behaviour, what they pay attention to, what they remember, what they forget.
What Did Rickwood et al do?
Classified cognitive biases into four categories.
Cognitive Bias: Faulty Beliefs of Skills and Judgement
Gambling addicts have an illusion of control, meaning they overestimate their ability to influence a random event.
e.g. they believe they’re skilled at choosing a lottery number, making them more likely to gamble.
Cognitive Bias: Engaging in Personal Traits/ Ritual Behaviours
Addicted Gamblers believe they have greater probability of winning over other people because they’re lucky/ have engaged in superstitious behaviour.
e.g. touching a certain piece of clothing before placing a bet makes them more likely to win.
Cognitive Bias: Selective Recall
Addicted gamblers remember certain types of information/ memories/ events better than others.
e.g. they’re more likely to recall their wins but forget their loses describing them as unexplainable mysteries, leading them to be more likely to gamble.
Cognitive Bias: Faulty Perceptions
Addicted gamblers have distorted views about operation of chance.
e.g. belief that a losing streak cannot last and will always be ended with a win, making them more likely to gamble.
What’s Self-Efficacy?
Refers to individual’s perceived ability to control own behaviour, can explain why some people relapse into gambling again after abstaining.
Low-self efficacy: believe you can’t give up gambling, will always be a ‘part of them.’
Leads to self-fulfilling prophecy where individual continues to gamble because they believe they can’t stop themselves, causing gambling behaviour to be reinforced due to gamblers belief they lack control over aspect of life.
