Personal Luck Usage Scale (PLUS): psychometric validation of a measure of gambling-related belief in luck as a personal possession

An Examination of the Relationship Between Social Casino Gaming and Gambling: The Bad, The Ugly, and The Good

“…Together, these misperceptions about many social casino games may lead players to believe that they will experience similar positive outcomes when playing gambling games with real money, which may influence a social casino gamer's decision to try gambling with real money. Providing circumstantial support for this contention, Bednarz and colleagues (2013) found that social casino gamers who migrate to online gambling sites from free-play modes hold greater illusions of control over the outcome of the game, which contributes to gambling behaviour (Langer, 1975;Wohl & Enzle, 2002;Wohl, Stewart, & Young, 2011). In other words, winning that is experienced in social casino games may facilitate migration to gambling under the false sense that similar outcomes will be experienced while gambling.…”

“…This belief likely stems from early success at games of chance that leads players to believe that they have gambling-related skills. The result is a blurred line between the chance and the skill elements of gambling games, which is associated not only with disordered gambling, but also with a reluctance to seek treatment (see Wohl et al, 2005Wohl et al, , 2007Wohl et al, , 2011. Additionally, people who want to build their skill may be apt to make micro-transactions to purchase credits when they have been depleted.…”

“…In this way, skill-building motivations also place the social casino gamer at risk for progression to disordered gambling. As demonstrated by Wohl and colleagues (Wohl & Enzle, 2002Wohl et al, 2011;Wohl, Young & Hart, 2005, some people come to believe that they are personally lucky. That is, some people feel they possess a personal quality of luck that allows them to maximize chance-related outcomes.…”

Cognitive Function and Beliefs in Luck in the Consumer Context

“…Viewing luck as stable and with an internal locus of control leads to heightened perceived control (Darke & Freedman, 1997a). As a result, those who endorse personal luck believe that luck is a facet of their disposition, which can have a deterministic impact on future outcomes (Wohl, Stewart, & Young, 2011). Not surprisingly, this feeling is related to increased confidence and risk-taking during chance situations (Darke & Freedman, 1997b).…”

“…It is apparent that some people endorse luck as a personal quality or attribute that can be deployed as an advantage during external, uncontrollable events (Darke & Freedman, 1997a;Wohl, Stewart, Young, 2011). Darke and Freedman (1997b) demonstrate how irrational beliefs of luck are bolstered by past success where luck was attributed to be a causal factor.…”