(Redirected from Gamblers)
The term 'gambling' has had many different meanings depending on the cultural and historical context in which it is used. Currently, in
Western societies, it has an
economic definition, referring to "wagering
money or something of material
value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods". Typically the outcome of the wager is evident within a short period of time.
The term 'gaming'
[1] in this context typically refers to instances in which the activity has been specifically permitted by law. The two words are not mutually exclusive; i.e.: a “gaming†company offers (legal) “gambling†activities to the public.
[2]
Legal aspects
Because many religious authorities generally disapprove of gambling to some extent, and because gambling can have adverse
social consequences, most legal jurisdictions limit gambling to some extent. Some Islamic nations prohibit gambling; most other countries
regulate it.
[3]
Many jurisdictions, local as well as national, either ban or heavily control (by licensing) gambling. Such regulation generally leads to
gambling tourism and illegal gambling. The involvement of governments, through regulation and taxation, has led to a close connection between many governments and gaming organizations, where legal gambling provides significant government revenue, such as in
Monaco or
Macau.
Under US federal law,
gambling is legal in the
United States, and states are free to regulate or prohibit the practice. Gambling has been legal in
Nevada since 1931, forming the backbone of the state's economy, and the city of
Las Vegas is perhaps the best known gambling destination in the world. In 1976, gambling was legalized in
Atlantic City,
New Jersey, and in 1990, it was legalized in
Tunica,
Mississippi; both of those cities have developed extensive casino and resort areas since then. Since a favorable
US Supreme Court decision in 1987, many
Native American tribes have built their own
casinos on tribal lands as a way to provide revenue for the tribe. Because the tribes are considered sovereign nations, they are often exempt from state laws banning gambling, and are instead
regulated under federal law.
Because contracts of
insurance have many features in common with wagers, insurance contracts are often distinguished under law as agreements in which either party has an interest in the "bet-upon" outcome ''beyond'' the specific financial terms. E.g.: a “bet†with an insurer on whether one's house will burn down is not gambling, but rather ''insurance'' — as the homeowner has an obvious interest in the continued existence of his/her home ''independent of'' the purely financial aspects of the "bet" (i.e., the insurance policy).
There is generally legislation requiring that the odds in gaming devices are
statistically random, to prevent manufacturers from making some high-payoff results impossible. Since these high-payoffs have very low
probability, a house bias can quite easily be missed unless checking the odds carefully.
[4]
Gambling variables
There are three variables common to all forms of gambling:
★ How much is being wagered, the initial stake (in money or material goods).
★ The predictability of the event.
★
★ In mechanical or electronic gambling such as lotteries, slot machines and bingo, the results are random and unpredictable; no amount of skill or knowledge (assuming machinery is functioning as intended) can give an advantage in predictability to anyone.
★
★ However, for sports events such as horse racing and soccer matches there is some predictability to the outcome; thus a person with greater knowledge and/or skill will have an advantage over others.
★ The odds agreed between the two (or more) parties to the wager; where there is a house or a bookmaker, the odds are (quite legally) arranged in favour of the house.
The
expected value, positive or negative, is a mathematical calculation using these three variables. The amount wagered determines the scale of an individual wager (bet); the odds and the amount wagered determine the payout if successful; the predictability determines the frequency of success. Finally the frequency of success times the payout minus the amount wagered equals the ''"expected value"''
The skill of a gambler lies in understanding and maneuvering the three variables so that the ''"actual value"'' is positive over a series of wagers.
Types of gambling
Casino games
While almost any game can be played for money, and any game typically played for money can also be played just for fun, some games are generally offered in a
casino setting.
"Beatable" casino games
A highly skilled player with a well-designed strategy can create a positive mathematical expectation on games such as:
★
Blackjack—with
card counting unless a continuous shuffler is used
★
Pai Gow Poker and
Tiles—player-dealt
★
Parimutuel betting
★
Poker (Also recognized as a
game of skill)
★
Slot machines—where progressive jackpots or bonuses reach a certain break-even point
★
Sports betting
★
Video poker—with proper
pay table and/or
progressive jackpot
"Unbeatable" casino games
These games have a negative expectation regardless of how few or many games someone plays. Nevertheless, this does not stop gamblers from having false beliefs (the "
gambler's fallacy") that their actions or "way of playing" will influence the outcome.
★
Baccarat (punto banco)
★
Caribbean Stud Poker
★
Casino war
★
Craps (though some believe the use of
dice control can beat the game)
★
Fan-Tan
★
Faro
★
Keno
★
Let it ride
★
Pachinko
★
Pyramid Poker
★
3-card poker
★
4-card poker
★
Red Dog
★
Roulette
★
Sic Bo
★
Spanish 21—without counting
★
Texas Hold'em Bonus Poker
Non-casino gambling games
Gambling games that take place outside of casinos include Bingo (as played in the
US and
UK),
dead pool,
lotteries,
pull-tab games and
scratchcards, and
Mahjong.
Other non-casino gambling games include:
★
Card games, such as
Liar's poker,
Bridge,
Basset,
Lansquenet,
Piquet,
Put,
Teen patti
★
Coin-tossing games such as
Head and Tail,
Two-up
★
★
Confidence tricks such as
Three-card Monte or the
Shell game
★
Carnival Games such as
The Razzle or
Hanky Pank
★
Dice-based games, such as
Backgammon,
Liar's dice,
Passe-dix,
Hazard,
Threes,
Pig, or
Mexico
★ Although coin tossing isn't usually played in a casino, it has been known to be an official gambling game in some Australian casinos[5]
Fixed-odds gambling
Fixed-odds gambling and
Parimutuel betting frequently occur at many types of sporting events. In addition many
bookmakers offer fixed odds on a number of non-sports related outcomes, for example the direction and extent of movement of various
financial indices, the winner of
television competitions such as ''
Big Brother'', election results,
[6]. Interactive
prediction markets also offer trading on these outcomes, with "shares" of results trading on an open market.
Parimutuel betting
Main articles: Parimutuel betting
One of the most widespread forms of gambling involves betting on
horse or
greyhound racing. Wagering may take place through
parimutuel pools; or
bookmakers may take bets personally. Parimutuel wagers pay off at prices determined by support in the wagering pools, while bookmakers pay off either at the odds offered at the time of accepting the bet; or at the median odds offered by track bookmakers at the time the race started.
Sports betting
Main articles: sports betting
Betting on team sports has become an important
service industry in many countries. For example, millions of
Britons play the
football pools every week.
Arbitrage betting
Main articles: arbitrage betting
Arbitrage betting is a theoretically risk-free betting system in which every outcome of an event is bet upon so that a known profit will be made by the bettor upon completion of the event, regardless of the outcome. Arbitrage betting is a combination of the ancient art of
arbitrage trading and gambling, which has been made possible the large numbers of bookmakers in the marketplace, creating occasional opportunities for arbitrage.
Other types of betting
One can also bet with another person that a statement is true or false, or that a specified event will happen (a "back bet") or will not happen (a "lay bet") within a specified time. This occurs in particular when two people have opposing but strongly-held views on truth or events. Not only do the parties hope to gain from the bet, they place the bet also to demonstrate their certainty about the issue. Some means of determining the issue at stake must exist. Sometimes the amount bet remains nominal, demonstrating the outcome as one of principle rather than of financial importance.
Betting exchanges allow consumers to both back and lay at odds of their choice. Similar in some ways to a stock exchange, a better may want to back a horse (hoping it to win) or lay a horse (hoping it to lose, effectively acting as bookmaker)
Staking systems
Main articles: betting strategy
Many betting systems have been created in an attempt to "beat the bookie" but most still accept that no system can make an unprofitable bet profitable over time. Widely-used systems include:
★ Fixed stakes – a traditional system of staking the same amount on each selection.
★ Fixed profits – the stakes vary based on the odds to ensure the same profit from each winning selection.
★
Due-column betting – A variation on fixed profits betting in which the bettor sets a target profit and then calculates a bet size that will make this profit, adding any losses to the target.
★
Kelly – the optimum level to bet to maximize your future median bank level.
★
Martingale – A system based on staking enough each time to recover losses from previous bet(s) until one wins.
Other uses of the term "gambling"
Many risk-return choices are sometimes referred to colloquially as "gambling." Whether this terminology is acceptable is a matter of debate, but generally the following activities are not considered gambling:
★ Emotional or physical risk-taking, where the risk-return ratio is not quantifiable (e.g.,
skydiving,
campaigning for political office, asking someone for a date, etc.)
★
Insurance is a method of shifting risk from one party to another. Insurers use actuarial methods to calculate appropriate premiums, which could be considered similar to calculating gambling odds. However, insurers can set their premiums to obtain a long term positive expected return.
★ Situations where the possible return is a secondary reason for the wager/purchase (e.g., buying a raffle ticket to support a
charitable cause)
Investments are also usually not considered gambling, although some investments can involve significant risk. Examples of investments include
stocks,
bonds and
real estate. Starting a business can also be considered a form of investment. Investments are generally not considered gambling when they meet the following criteria:
★ Positive expected returns (at least in the long term)
★ Economic utility
★ Underlying value independent of the risk being undertaken
Some
speculative investment activities are particularly risky, but are still usually considered separately from gambling:
★ Securities
derivatives, such as
options or
futures, where the value of the derivative is dependent on the value of the underlying asset at a specific point in time (typically the derivative's associated expiration date)
★ Foreign currency exchange (
forex) transactions
★
Prediction markets
Psychological aspects
:''Main article:
Problem gambling''
Though many participate in gambling as a form of
recreation or even as a means to gain an income, gambling, like any behavior which involves variation in
brain chemistry, can become a
psychologically addictive and harmful behavior in some people.
Reinforcement schedules may also make gamblers persist in gambling even after repeated losses.
The Russian writer
Dostoevsky portrays in his novella ''
The Gambler'' the psychological implications of gambling and how gambling can affect gamblers. He also associates gambling and the idea of "
getting rich quick", suggesting that Russians may have a particular affinity for gambling. Dostoevsky shows the effect of betting money for the chance of gaining more in 19th-century Europe. The association between Russians and gambling has fed legends of the origins of
Russian roulette.
By country
★
Gambling in Macau (PRC)
★
Gambling in the United Kingdom
★
Gambling in the United States
See also
★
Online gambling
★
Mobile gambling
★
Casino
★
Gambler's ruin
★
Gambler's fallacy
★
Gaming mathematics
References
1. United Kingdom Office of Public Sector Information: Definition as Gaming
2. Gambling Law US
3. International Association of Gaming Regulators: Members
4. Nevada State Gaming Control Board: Technical Standards (Adopted)
5. Sky City - SkyCity Casino - Table Games - Two Up
6. ABC.net: US election betting backs Bush
External links
★
DMOZ Gambling directory
★
Yahoo Gambling directory
★
Gaming Studies Research Center - at
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
★
Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming at the
University of Nevada, Reno
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