House-edge information yields lower subjective chances of winning than equivalent return-to-player percentages: New evidence from support forum participants
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2020.45.9Keywords:
replication, warning labels, gambling, gambling treatment, problem gamblersAbstract
Information messages that communicate the average cost of play are a helpful consumer protection tool in gambling. In Australia and the United Kingdom, cost of play information is typically communicated via the “return-to-player” statistic, e.g., “This game has an average percentage payout of 90%.” Through a sample recruited through a gambling support forum (n = 49), this paper reports how house-edge information (e.g., “This game keeps 10% of all money bet on average”) is associated with lower perceived chances of winning, as opposed to equivalent return-to-player information. Accordingly, this study also extends the literature on optimal gambling messaging to a group of support forum users.
Résumé
Les messages destinés à renseigner les joueurs sur le coût moyen des activités de jeux de hasard constituent une mesure de protection du consommateur utile. En Australie et au Royaume-Uni, cette information est habituellement transmise sous forme de statistique précisant le « taux de retour », par exemple : « Ce jeu a un taux de retour de 90 %. » Cette étude montre, sur la base d’un échantillon recruté au sein d’un forum de soutien aux joueurs (n=49), que les messages axés sur la marge de profit des maisons de jeu (par ex. « La maison conserve en moyenne 10 % des sommes misées ») ont une incidence négative sur la perception des chances de gagner, contrairement aux messages sur le taux de retour. Nos conclusions ajoutent aux connaissances sur la nature des messages à adresser aux membres des groupes de soutien aux joueurs.
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