Experts Say Slot Machines Pose Particular Risk for Compulsive, Addicted Gamblers

By Hugh C. McBride

When news reporters or fiction writers turn their attention toward compulsive gambling, their focus is often on the grizzled railbird rooting against hope for his latest longshot, the obsessed dad risking his kids' college funds with online poker marathons, or the high-roller tossing hemorrhaging hundred-dollar chips at the craps table.

But if you look over that high-roller's shoulder, you might catch a glimpse of the most insidious of all gambling compulsions. No, not the wannabe wise guys huddled around the blackjack table or the crowds of tourists entranced by the hypnotic revolutions of the roulette wheel.

Look a little farther.

See that middle-aged woman at the slot machine?

If some experts are correct, she's the one.

The Lure of Slot Machines

In a Sept. 6 article by Gary Rotstein of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, two addiction professionals identified slot machines as particularly problematic for individuals who may be prone to developing a gambling addiction:

"Any form of gambling is potentially addictive, but [slots] tend to be more addictive," said Nigel Turner of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto. "There's no stop, like buying a lottery ticket ... Slots tend to be the game format most frequently associated with help line calls, in part because they're the most widely available continuous games out there."

Bob Breen, director of the Rhode Island Gambling Treatment Program, said that of about 1,000 individuals the program has treated, nearly 70 percent of them are addicted to video gambling machines of some form. Those players frequently become addicted in less than a year, far quicker than those succumbing to any other form of gambling, he said.

The connection between slot machines and compulsive behavior was also addressed by Eliza Strickland in a June 16, 2008, article on the website Salon.com.

Strickland, who described slot machines as "one of the most efficient systems that humans have ever devised for delivering a dopamine rush to your brain while extracting money from your wallet," devoted part of her article to research conducted by MIT professor Natasha Dow Schull, a cultural anthropologist and vocal critic of the gaming industry:

Schull has studied the interface between slot machines and the players who throng to them. As she explains, the old one-armed bandits are gone: Players were wasting too much time pulling the lever. Now push-button and touch-screen games are the rule, where a hardcore customer playing at top speed can play a game every five seconds.

When you consider the slot machine makers, says Schull, "It's clear their ideal customer is the addict. They have a term, 'player extinction,' which means you lose all your money. They're talking about this as a goal!"

Designed to Addict?

Gaming industry representatives concede that their games and machines may be misused by "problem gamblers," but they are adamant that the devices themselves are not to blame for any addictive or compulsive behaviors.

Industry critics and a number of addiction professionals are far from convinced.

In a March 7 article by Carey Goldberg of The Boston Globe, gambling addiction expert Bob Breen said that the rapidity with which slot machine players can develop a pathological behavior exceeds that of those whose gambling involves card games, sports or lotteries.

Breen, who heads the Rhode Island Hospital Gambling Treatment Program, said that players can become entranced by the relentless speed of video slot machines in a manner that is akin to receiving an IV drip of an addictive drug.

This drug metaphor was furthered by Goldberg himself, who opened his article by noting that video slot machines have been described as "the crack cocaine of the gambling industry." Goldberg used his next paragraph to paint an even more vivid picture of video slot machine addiction.

"Modern-day slot machines are computerized sound-and-light shows so skillfully designed to keep players glued to their seats that some have been known to wear adult diapers to avoid bathroom breaks," Goldberg wrote.
From Distraction to Addiction

In Strickland's Salon.com article, psychologist Henry Lesieur (who works with Breen at the Rhode Island Hospital Gambling Treatment Program) described three types of people who come to the Rhode Island program for help with their compulsive gambling:

1. Individuals who appear to be genetically predisposed to addiction, and who respond too strongly to the stimulus of gambling.
2. Social gamblers who get caught up in the excitement of the activity and end up losing far more than they had intended to risk.
3. People who are depressed, anxious or struggling with dramatic life experiences, and who look to gambling as a source of distraction and emotional rush.

This third group accounts for the majority of people seeking treatment for gambling addiction, Lesieur told Strickland, comparing their suffering to people who attempt to self-medicate or numb themselves to psychological pain with alcohol, prescription pills or illicit drugs.

In Goldberg's Boston Globe article, gambling studies professor Mark Griffiths of England's Nottingham Trent University noted that people who turn to video slot machines for amusement or distraction risk being enticed not only by the occasional payout, but by the regular occurrence of near-misses:

Research has also shown that people are tantalized, rather than repelled, by a certain number of times they come close to a jackpot, Dr. Griffiths said. Designers make use of that, he said, realizing that people can enjoy coming close as much as 40 percent of the time, but get too frustrated if it's more often.

"People not only get a physiological buzz when they win, but also when they nearly win as well," he said.

Help for Compulsive Gamblers

Though modern society has developed a greater appreciation for the medical legitimacy of diseases such as alcoholism or drug addiction, many people continue to mistakenly attribute behavioral compulsions (such as binge eating, sex addiction and compulsive gambling) as evidence of moral failure or a lack of willpower.

These misconceptions can be as dangerous as they are wrong.

Gambling addictions and compulsions are very real conditions that can lead to very real and lasting damage. Thankfully, effective treatment programs for addictive behaviors are available to help compulsive gamblers overcome their disorders and regain control over their lives.

The following are three such programs:

• In Canton, S.D., Keystone Treatment Center provides residential and outpatient treatment for compulsive gambling, chemical dependency, alcoholism and related disorders for adults, teenagers and adolescents.
• At Northern California's Azure Acres Drug and Alcohol Treatment Center, adult men and women receive comprehensive professional intervention for gambling addiction, other compulsive behaviors, drug addiction and alcoholism. 
• In Arizona, the addiction recovery experts at Sierra Tucson treatment center have created a compulsive gambling/compulsive spending treatment track for clients who are dealing with these behavioral disorders.

Whether the result of genetic predisposition, unhealthy decision-making or the manipulation of gambling machine manufacturers, compulsive gambling can be treated. With effective professional intervention, formerly addicted individuals can resume their pursuit of healthier and happier lives.