GAMBLING AND MENTAL HEALTH Professor of
A
GENERATION ago, a pessimistic student of society, G. L. Sandi-
lands, wrote:? "During the last
ten years
gambling
on
the results of all kinds of games has increased to such an extent that there is now the gravest danger that the heart of the nation will be eaten out by this the burning up of cancerous growth our vitality is raging with such alarming fury that every week sees some new mark of the ravages of this desperate disease. The time will soon be here when there will not exist in the entire country a single .
.
.
family untainted by leprosy".
Too
this
devastating
gloomy
shown, I think, that this rather too gloomy. It is true that the gambling "turnover" in Britain is now on a vaster scale than ever, and is at least ?1,000 m. per annum. Even so, the present state of affairs cannot compare with the situation in the second half of the 17th and the early 18th centuries when the reaction against Puritanism, coupled with potent influences from the Continent, combined to produce an unprecedented craze for games of chance in all classes of society. If we are to see our topic in perspective we need to recognise the fact that gambling practices, which derive from rites of divination, are of immemorial antiquity, and well-nigh universal. If there is anything in common between the Indian tribes of North America and the citizens of the United States, it is the passion for gambling which they share. The peoples of ancient Persia, Greece and Rome were as addicted to this practice as the inhabitants of presentday Brazil or equatorial Africa. A custom so deep-seated and so widespread could scarcely have the socially and personally devastating effects claimed by its opponents. Gambling, in one form or another, Events have
prediction
was
subject-matter of this article is treated more extensively in the author's book entitled "Behaviour in Uncertainty and its Social Implications", London: Allen and Unwin, 1964.
*The
*
by John Co"1 Psychology, University of Mancn6
to satisfy some basic hu"11 "want," irrespective of level of cuK or political system. Soviet Russia
c
t
j
seems
,
^
"
its State lotteries no less than SP3j. with its totally different regime. 1 less of ideology, it would seem, Pe?L, 1 take a delight in the chance of ga'nli if not a fortune, at least some while prize. In his regular gamble , man dreams of breaking ?1'
working
his economic constraints. He that the modest reward he 0 his daily toil will never allow him to the things he longs for in fantasy. he reconciles himself to his drab tence by the hope that one day luck be on his side. Thus by gambling clings to the possibility, which he ^ distinguish from a probability, that ^ can rise in the world and satisfy * desire for material goals other beyond his reach.
ki1^,
receives^ ei},
^
Gambling
breakdown
sPe^
At least half of the money gambling in Britain goes into "j racing. Greyhound racing and fo?
$
tenth each, ? rest goes into fixed odds betting, Premium Bonds, gambling-in clubs y j on so-called "one-armed bandits. this activity may be thought of ^ of redistributing the means b wealth. It is not a rational way, ^ as a competitive society such ^ ^ gambling acts as a stabiliser. p
pools take about
a!l-0ai1 ^
a
n^ii1
people
are
prepared
to
accept
ineQ11^
of incomes if they believe that the y of Fortune may suddenly turn in jjt s favour. Whether we regard this ^ lisation as good or bad depends ^ scale of values, and it is not a matt ^ which psychology or psychiatry It J can pronounce judgement. not be forgotten that the concePjf' "mental health" is itself, in large nV ure, culturally defined, for a man ^ considered mentally healthy society may be dubbed a psychopa t pervert in another. Nevertheless a distinction nw
aS.Q4
inj-
intj,c
152
v^ew menta^ P?'nt I Ok ^rom between the punter who stakes
in time has the effect of reducing subjective probability of an event taking place. That is why, no doubt,
ness
the
'
I as
proportion of his weekly income Ses' dogs, football or Bingo, and or a(j ,.trife gambler who, by profession
against the law takes The probability of being caught and, if caught, punished, seems to him at the moment exceedingly remote, and therefore it has no deterrent effect. Every time someone smokes a cigarette he is enjoying a little flutter. In the typical money gamble we hazard a sixpence, say, for the chance later In smoking a on of winning a ?1. cigarette, we hazard the health of our lungs in the seemingly remote future for the pleasure of enjoying an immediate smoke. The gamble with lung cancer is disguised because the prize (or payoff) is immediate, whereas the possibility of losing the stake (health of the lungs) is something that appears to belong far ahead in time, and hence it is disregarded. Furthermore, the smoker does not attach much danger to smoking a single cigarette, and he is apt to treat each smoke as a separate and independent event. many an offender
the
his chance.
lct'?n,
is wholly taken up with of chance and their outcome.
ga
gambler Th
0rdinary punter
Pri?
looks upon the
Lfe as a desirable objective, not only ,?re he has won it but afterwards as Ml. And he can stop his play whenwr he wants to. This seems perfectly
jw-erent.
but the real gambler is
very
He
values the prize only 'o^ s tts has won it. Afterwards it l)js true attractiveness for him, because goal is not so much to win the i to a ^'ate Pr'ze- This is only a means which he can never attain, for t0 ?.ls no limit to the amount he wants ln- That is why he increases his after every loss; and as his losses in t,' s? do his hopes mount of winning Hiatt enc** ?ut there is no end; no how much he wins, he still rejj. ,ains dissatisfied. This characteristic ten becomes intelligible if we the the gambler as one who is testing in order to see whether they r him, in much the same manner ^ tests his parents' affection: if tjj ar will they let me go ?" It is as were to say: "The gods have i etgambler me win ?100. is jn But their wealth ustible. ?100 is of no conse^en to them. Would they let me Wjn The moment he wins despises this prize, and whether fate will allow him to ^in and so on. ?>000, tyg ?Uo ^.arnble not only with money but Wlth health, reputation and life ?
thern
gf0^s
Oddly enough, small probabilities magnified if the outcome is a favourable one, such as winning a prize in a football pool. If, however, the tend to be
regae"?cy
faVofds
outcome is
such
"kn.child
However, people associate gambling
of a ]
however large
fii0re Eain
t-
h
it
ex-
relationship to hard work merit, people try to secure them by other means, and gambling tends to increase. Furthermore, if powerful advertising pressures make people aware of the good things that money can buy, the temptation to obtain the money by
here,
?Wever small it may be. Remote-
and the
or
possibility might be, the
are content with an immediate
gain,
to bear little
factor me factor is important 0re remote in time the
or
which such practices flourish in on social any given society depends values and economic conditions at the time. When monetary rewards seem tent to
sense gambling permeates existence, for there are a great Ways of hazarding something *n lhe hope of gaining an ntage.
rv.
influences
with financial loss
re
.The The
to be unfavourable, accident on the road, the is subjectively underrated.
likely
Community
In this
?ure Hiany PreCj
an
probability
^ *1,00^000?" ^?'nd itseif
as
fair means or foul is bound to be intensified. Those with limited incomes will be drawn to gamble for there is no other to legitimate way in which they are able there gratify their wants. Thus, when is too large a gap between the cost of the things people want and their purchasing
153
capacity, they are apt ling or crime to bridge
to turn to
the gap.
gamb-
Sort of game This perhaps presents simplified picture of the
an
over-
situation. There is little doubt that the majority of punters enjoy their gamble for its own sake, as a sort of game. It is rather rare for large sums of money to be won In or lost outside the gambling clubs. the main, small sums are staked. The prizes are mostly modest, and they provide the fortunate winner with the additional few pounds to give himself At or his family an unexpected treat. the same time, he is able to live with the thought that the tedious uniformity of his life may be enlivened by the play of chance. There is no evidence that the gambling habits of the nation, by and large, have led to an increased incidence of mental disorder. Nor is there any sign that contemporary housewives who attend regular Bingo sessions have introduced marital disharmony into what was previously an idyllic existence. I should like to emphasise, too, that all risk-taking, in whatever form of behaviour it manifests itself, is a species of gambling. Some spiritual leaders gamble with the fate of their souls, or with the chance of achieving eternal bliss in the after-life. Others prefer to gamble with a small portion of their weekly income. The heart of the economic life of the nation, the Stock Exchange, is, in principle, one great gambling establishment. Psychoanalysts have suggested, though with little in the way
of convincing evidence to support th? that the gambler's passion is an sion of conflict originating in i sexuality. It is true that some of ), celebrated gamblers described in
expr.je
J
century literature were thoroughg0, rakes, but it is probable that they On the contrary, not typical. moralists of the day, to whom and suicide were inseparable, sav^ y link between gambling and sensu^1 The real gambler, one moralist :i "neglects the luxuries of the table,vV j
^
gam^
ignores hunger anxiety, discofl ^ despair, rage, execrations to do w'tfl pleasures either of body or mind?" and
He What have
woman.
thirst.
.
Not moralists Those who are professionally C?A cerned with the promotion of ^ $ health should resist the become moralists, and they S^?J beware of projecting their own 'a values on to the public at Q[
temptatio11^ Per.s?f?rc, mea^/Mi ^ resources.
Gambling practices are a spending time and there is ample leisure and few comPe J interests, it is hardly surprising ^ to people should devote themselves of afforded by games pleasures c^ae(1i)
If millions of citizens choose to _sp ^ their time at the race-course, in -t j< betting shop or in the Bingo club,n ^ because they feel there is nothing ^ worthwhile or enjoyable for them Only when they are offered a variety of satisfying alternative will gambling assume its proper plaC the cultural life of the community-
acti^
A
GENERATION ago, a pessimistic student of society, G. L. Sandi-
lands, wrote:? "During the last
ten years
gambling
on
the results of all kinds of games has increased to such an extent that there is now the gravest danger that the heart of the nation will be eaten out by this the burning up of cancerous growth our vitality is raging with such alarming fury that every week sees some new mark of the ravages of this desperate disease. The time will soon be here when there will not exist in the entire country a single .
.
.
family untainted by leprosy".
Too
this
devastating
gloomy
shown, I think, that this rather too gloomy. It is true that the gambling "turnover" in Britain is now on a vaster scale than ever, and is at least ?1,000 m. per annum. Even so, the present state of affairs cannot compare with the situation in the second half of the 17th and the early 18th centuries when the reaction against Puritanism, coupled with potent influences from the Continent, combined to produce an unprecedented craze for games of chance in all classes of society. If we are to see our topic in perspective we need to recognise the fact that gambling practices, which derive from rites of divination, are of immemorial antiquity, and well-nigh universal. If there is anything in common between the Indian tribes of North America and the citizens of the United States, it is the passion for gambling which they share. The peoples of ancient Persia, Greece and Rome were as addicted to this practice as the inhabitants of presentday Brazil or equatorial Africa. A custom so deep-seated and so widespread could scarcely have the socially and personally devastating effects claimed by its opponents. Gambling, in one form or another, Events have
prediction
was
subject-matter of this article is treated more extensively in the author's book entitled "Behaviour in Uncertainty and its Social Implications", London: Allen and Unwin, 1964.
*The
*
by John Co"1 Psychology, University of Mancn6
to satisfy some basic hu"11 "want," irrespective of level of cuK or political system. Soviet Russia
c
t
j
seems
,
^
"
its State lotteries no less than SP3j. with its totally different regime. 1 less of ideology, it would seem, Pe?L, 1 take a delight in the chance of ga'nli if not a fortune, at least some while prize. In his regular gamble , man dreams of breaking ?1'
working
his economic constraints. He that the modest reward he 0 his daily toil will never allow him to the things he longs for in fantasy. he reconciles himself to his drab tence by the hope that one day luck be on his side. Thus by gambling clings to the possibility, which he ^ distinguish from a probability, that ^ can rise in the world and satisfy * desire for material goals other beyond his reach.
ki1^,
receives^ ei},
^
Gambling
breakdown
sPe^
At least half of the money gambling in Britain goes into "j racing. Greyhound racing and fo?
$
tenth each, ? rest goes into fixed odds betting, Premium Bonds, gambling-in clubs y j on so-called "one-armed bandits. this activity may be thought of ^ of redistributing the means b wealth. It is not a rational way, ^ as a competitive society such ^ ^ gambling acts as a stabiliser. p
pools take about
a!l-0ai1 ^
a
n^ii1
people
are
prepared
to
accept
ineQ11^
of incomes if they believe that the y of Fortune may suddenly turn in jjt s favour. Whether we regard this ^ lisation as good or bad depends ^ scale of values, and it is not a matt ^ which psychology or psychiatry It J can pronounce judgement. not be forgotten that the concePjf' "mental health" is itself, in large nV ure, culturally defined, for a man ^ considered mentally healthy society may be dubbed a psychopa t pervert in another. Nevertheless a distinction nw
aS.Q4
inj-
intj,c
152
v^ew menta^ P?'nt I Ok ^rom between the punter who stakes
in time has the effect of reducing subjective probability of an event taking place. That is why, no doubt,
ness
the
'
I as
proportion of his weekly income Ses' dogs, football or Bingo, and or a(j ,.trife gambler who, by profession
against the law takes The probability of being caught and, if caught, punished, seems to him at the moment exceedingly remote, and therefore it has no deterrent effect. Every time someone smokes a cigarette he is enjoying a little flutter. In the typical money gamble we hazard a sixpence, say, for the chance later In smoking a on of winning a ?1. cigarette, we hazard the health of our lungs in the seemingly remote future for the pleasure of enjoying an immediate smoke. The gamble with lung cancer is disguised because the prize (or payoff) is immediate, whereas the possibility of losing the stake (health of the lungs) is something that appears to belong far ahead in time, and hence it is disregarded. Furthermore, the smoker does not attach much danger to smoking a single cigarette, and he is apt to treat each smoke as a separate and independent event. many an offender
the
his chance.
lct'?n,
is wholly taken up with of chance and their outcome.
ga
gambler Th
0rdinary punter
Pri?
looks upon the
Lfe as a desirable objective, not only ,?re he has won it but afterwards as Ml. And he can stop his play whenwr he wants to. This seems perfectly
jw-erent.
but the real gambler is
very
He
values the prize only 'o^ s tts has won it. Afterwards it l)js true attractiveness for him, because goal is not so much to win the i to a ^'ate Pr'ze- This is only a means which he can never attain, for t0 ?.ls no limit to the amount he wants ln- That is why he increases his after every loss; and as his losses in t,' s? do his hopes mount of winning Hiatt enc** ?ut there is no end; no how much he wins, he still rejj. ,ains dissatisfied. This characteristic ten becomes intelligible if we the the gambler as one who is testing in order to see whether they r him, in much the same manner ^ tests his parents' affection: if tjj ar will they let me go ?" It is as were to say: "The gods have i etgambler me win ?100. is jn But their wealth ustible. ?100 is of no conse^en to them. Would they let me Wjn The moment he wins despises this prize, and whether fate will allow him to ^in and so on. ?>000, tyg ?Uo ^.arnble not only with money but Wlth health, reputation and life ?
thern
gf0^s
Oddly enough, small probabilities magnified if the outcome is a favourable one, such as winning a prize in a football pool. If, however, the tend to be
regae"?cy
faVofds
outcome is
such
"kn.child
However, people associate gambling
of a ]
however large
fii0re Eain
t-
h
it
ex-
relationship to hard work merit, people try to secure them by other means, and gambling tends to increase. Furthermore, if powerful advertising pressures make people aware of the good things that money can buy, the temptation to obtain the money by
here,
?Wever small it may be. Remote-
and the
or
possibility might be, the
are content with an immediate
gain,
to bear little
factor me factor is important 0re remote in time the
or
which such practices flourish in on social any given society depends values and economic conditions at the time. When monetary rewards seem tent to
sense gambling permeates existence, for there are a great Ways of hazarding something *n lhe hope of gaining an ntage.
rv.
influences
with financial loss
re
.The The
to be unfavourable, accident on the road, the is subjectively underrated.
likely
Community
In this
?ure Hiany PreCj
an
probability
^ *1,00^000?" ^?'nd itseif
as
fair means or foul is bound to be intensified. Those with limited incomes will be drawn to gamble for there is no other to legitimate way in which they are able there gratify their wants. Thus, when is too large a gap between the cost of the things people want and their purchasing
153
capacity, they are apt ling or crime to bridge
to turn to
the gap.
gamb-
Sort of game This perhaps presents simplified picture of the
an
over-
situation. There is little doubt that the majority of punters enjoy their gamble for its own sake, as a sort of game. It is rather rare for large sums of money to be won In or lost outside the gambling clubs. the main, small sums are staked. The prizes are mostly modest, and they provide the fortunate winner with the additional few pounds to give himself At or his family an unexpected treat. the same time, he is able to live with the thought that the tedious uniformity of his life may be enlivened by the play of chance. There is no evidence that the gambling habits of the nation, by and large, have led to an increased incidence of mental disorder. Nor is there any sign that contemporary housewives who attend regular Bingo sessions have introduced marital disharmony into what was previously an idyllic existence. I should like to emphasise, too, that all risk-taking, in whatever form of behaviour it manifests itself, is a species of gambling. Some spiritual leaders gamble with the fate of their souls, or with the chance of achieving eternal bliss in the after-life. Others prefer to gamble with a small portion of their weekly income. The heart of the economic life of the nation, the Stock Exchange, is, in principle, one great gambling establishment. Psychoanalysts have suggested, though with little in the way
of convincing evidence to support th? that the gambler's passion is an sion of conflict originating in i sexuality. It is true that some of ), celebrated gamblers described in
expr.je
J
century literature were thoroughg0, rakes, but it is probable that they On the contrary, not typical. moralists of the day, to whom and suicide were inseparable, sav^ y link between gambling and sensu^1 The real gambler, one moralist :i "neglects the luxuries of the table,vV j
^
gam^
ignores hunger anxiety, discofl ^ despair, rage, execrations to do w'tfl pleasures either of body or mind?" and
He What have
woman.
thirst.
.
Not moralists Those who are professionally C?A cerned with the promotion of ^ $ health should resist the become moralists, and they S^?J beware of projecting their own 'a values on to the public at Q[
temptatio11^ Per.s?f?rc, mea^/Mi ^ resources.
Gambling practices are a spending time and there is ample leisure and few comPe J interests, it is hardly surprising ^ to people should devote themselves of afforded by games pleasures c^ae(1i)
If millions of citizens choose to _sp ^ their time at the race-course, in -t j< betting shop or in the Bingo club,n ^ because they feel there is nothing ^ worthwhile or enjoyable for them Only when they are offered a variety of satisfying alternative will gambling assume its proper plaC the cultural life of the community-
acti^
