The Psychology of The Gambler Essay

Alexei argues that in roulette, there is “not a strict order, [but] at least a certain pattern” (40). As this passage shows, Alexei craves control, but simply cannot have it in a game like roulette. The simple reality is that the outcomes of roulette are completely random. There is no pattern or order, but simply an erratic variety of different numbers. Alexei’s desire to “challenge Fate” is highly indicative of how badly he wants to control the truly uncontrollable (40). Just like in his relationships, Alexei cannot steer the path of the game of roulette in the direction of his choice. Alexei’s inability to control the game of roulette is what ultimately drives him to become addicted and admit that he is “a gambler” (102). Alexei’s desire to discover some sort of pattern or strategy is indicative of his desperation to prove his abilities as a gambler. Alexei cannot fathom that there is no pattern or order that will help him understand the game better. He simply has to leave the game up to chance, which propels him to a fairly destructive obsession with the game. Unfortunately for Alexei, the outcome of roulette is out of his direct control, which further proves that like the roulette wheel, most parts of Alexei’s life are completely

“Gambling addiction, particularly is easy to start; it requires no elaborate or illegal activities, no troublesome ingestion of substances, and it programs the body using its own chemicals” (Brodak 302). Molly Brodak the daughter of Joseph and the author of “Bandit” speaks up about growing up with a father who is addicted to gambling. Molly, her sister, and mother struggle to overcome the challenges that come along with having a man in their life who loses everything for them. Not only does this gambling addiction that Joseph suffers from harm his life financially but also emotionally.

The author portrayed the banker as a foolish and greedy man, and since Chekhov characterized him as static, he never changed. His inability to alter his ways resulted in him making an extraordinarily rash bet and later on him wanting to kill a man in cold blood. “That is not true! I bet you two million that you

Gambling can be done at a casino, racetrack, or online. Compulsive gambling addiction can lead to criminal behaviors. There are several phases in gambling. The winning phase lead gamblers to win several winnings, which leads them to believe that they will keep winning. The loosing phase often begins with bragging about their past wins and start gambling alone and begin to borrow money. The loosing phase leads to debts. The desperation phase can lead to suicidal thoughts, arrests, divorce and alcohol and drug abuse.

According to the National Council on Problem Gambling, nearly 1.5 million Americans have experienced pathological gambling, which occurs when there is a dependence, harm, or lack of control over gambling habits (Samhsa). Samhsa goes on to explain that pathological gambling can be sparked by gambling as little as once a week. It may even derive by going as little as once a month, or once a week. Unfortunately, this is what transpired to Angie Bachmann, in Charles Duhigg’s Power of Habit. Mother of three and wife to a full-time working husband, Angie was frequently left in an empty home, with nothing to do. Spending her days watching game shows, such as: The Price is Right, Angie would often times find herself lonely and bored (Duhigg 246). Angie decided that if she got through the week without withering of boredom, then she would be rewarded with an excursion to the casino. The trips started off once a week with a few hours and a couple hundred dollars. Her addiction quickly jump started from once a week to three times a week. She was secretly attending the casino, spending a couple thousand, and playing multiple hands at once (Duhigg 247). Angie finally felt as if she had something to be proud of; she wasn’t just an orthodox, stay-at-home mom. The casino did as much as they could to make Angie feel special, almost like a celebrity. For instance, Angie would arrive at the casino in a limo, dine out in the buffet, and live lavishly in the casino suites. In another light, I

RCP also suggest that a person is more predisposed to becoming addicted to gambling if someone else in the family – particularly a parent is or has been a problem gambler. This can be partly due to learnt behaviour – by seeing a parent gamble or having been taught to gamble by them, the child will feel that this activity is acceptable and a family activity. Often children are taken to dog or horse racing and encouraged to have a bet. This early initiation into gambling will mean that the symptoms of euphoria and excitement of the activity will be embedded at an early age. Another group of people who are more likely to become addicted to gambling are those who are already dependent or alcohol or illegal drugs and thus are already presenting as having an addictive personalities. It is interesting to note the location of many bookmakers in relation to pubs and social clubs in city centres and housing estates.

Gambling has many different types of activities. It is not always obvious when someone is addicted to gambling. Many factors can contribute to a gambling addiction, including desperation for money, the thrills and highs which brings the experience of desire. Whether you bet on card, sports, roulette, poker, or slots gambling can strain relationships, interfere with work and lead to financial issues. You might even do things that you may never thought you would do, like stealing money from family members or even strangers. Studies place the total number of compulsive gamblers at about 4.4 million, about equal to the nation’s ranks of hard-core drug addicts (Gold & Ferrell

Gambling, whether for life or money, is risky and success is not guaranteed, even if you ‘win’. Two different tales both involving risk.

Gambling disorder involves the urge to gamble continuously despite financial and social consequences or a desire to stop. It is seen as being out of control and dominating the person’s life. It is important to note that most gambling is not associated with a mental disorder as it is often a form of recreation in many cultures around the world. “Gambling can be defined as placing something of value at risk in the hopes of gaining something of greater value” (Potenza, 2008). Pathological gambling affects approximately between 0.1 percent and 2 percent of the population (Petry, 2016).

The DSM-V defines gambling as “risking something of value in the hopes of obtaining something of greater value” (2013). Gambling can be a social event, entertainment or a professional pursuit. It is accepted in many cultures and for most people gambling will not result in negative consequences. For others, gambling can risk livelihood, relationships and personal well-being.

Like many other authors, Dostoyevsky could not have been able to write his books as well as he did without his own experiences and lessons to guide him. An author’s own experience is a significant factor into how an author can write his or her novel. Without the author’s experience, the novel would be empty and it would not contain a certain value that novels should

The fourth member who shared the experience of gambling addiction was a 28 years old male who had master’s degree and worked in the financial department in a bank. He just stopped for the last two years and joined the Gamblers Anonymous. He did not realize that he had a problem. He started his gambling habit by playing poker with friends and playing online in 2000. He declared that he owed six figures plus interest to the credit card companies. He did not have a concept about keeping money. Furthermore, he claimed that what he enjoyed during gambling was the impulse. El-Guebaly, Mudry, Tavares, & Potenza (2011) also supported, "pathological gambling have been described as ego-syntonic, meaning they are often preceded by feelings of pleasure,

She was not a good daughter. She spent all of that money on gambling to be happier. She was so selfish. She just thought of herself. She didn’t think of her parents who had spent time and effort to raise her. However, each individual had their own capability to control themselves. Many gamblers could control themselves but many others could not. This weakness of the pathological gamblers might be prevented if the casino did not use aforementioned methods to weaken them. In this case, Angie Bachmann gambled because of her boredom, so like several people in this world, her life would be different if Harrah’s casino did not target her. In short, the casino should be responsible for her myriad

Freud proposes the idea of the victim of gambling to continue placing bets until they lose. Ultimately, this is what Alexei did throughout the novel until he had nothing at the end. Similar to Freud’s view, Marx had the same negative perspective on gambling. Marx would also state how the desire to gamble would increase depending on the player’s current situation with money. Alexei was low on money which made him increasingly desperate to seek out for some. Therefore, the option of gambling would be difficult to say no to, which is how Alexei fell into an obsession with making

Utilitarianism suggests that the act that results in the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of individuals is the option that we should choose. Whether gambling should be deemed as an ethical or unethical act depends entirely on the consequences and benefits gambling has on casinos, gamblers, and non-gamblers. If gambling results in the overall increase of a casino’s profit and the overall increase of a gambler’s profit and mental health, then the act of gambling would be considered ethical. However, if the act has more negative implications than positive, then the act of gambling would be unethical. For example, it would be unethical if the transaction between casinos and gamblers was rigged solely for the casino 's financial benefit while exploiting those who gamble there. The significant concern of this paper is not to point a finger at casinos and other gambling mediums as a means to blame them for the mental conditions of those who we’d consider as gambling addicts. Instead, the point of this paper is to acknowledge the effects of gambling and propose the importance of responsibility. I will present an unbiased view of gambling, paying close attention to the psychological effects and motives individuals have regarding gambling at casinos. Also, I will look at the positive results associated with having a successful casino business, so that allowing gambling is ethical from a utilitarian point of