Tilt in Online Poker: Loss of Control and Gambling Disorder

Abstract

Online poker is a form of gambling where an element of skill may influence the outcome of the game. ‘Tilt’ in poker describes an episode during which the player can no longer control their game by rational decisions. It leads to a loss of control over the game, a loss of emotional regulation, higher cognitive distortion, and a loss of money. This phenomenon, experienced by most players, could be the gateway to excessive gambling. The aim of this study was to assess the links between the frequency of tilt episodes, cognitive distortion, anxiety, depression, sensation seeking and excessive online poker gambling. Our sample is composed of 291 online poker players, with a mean age of 33.8 years (SD = 10.6). Participants completed an online self-assessment questionnaire, measuring the frequency of tilt episodes, cognitive distortion, anxiety, depression and impulsivity. The findings indicated that the frequency of tilt episodes and cognitive distortion were the only significant predictors of excessive online gambling (respectively, r = 0.49 and r = 0.20). Tilt frequency and cognitive distortion were strongly correlated (GRCS, r = 0.60), moderate to low correlations were found for tilt and anxiety (HADS, r = 0.40), and positive and negative urgency (UPPS, r = 0.27). To date, tilt has seldom been studied, and could improve our understanding of online poker gamblers. It could be a new means of identifying at risk gamblers, and thus facilitating preventive measures specifically adapted to this population.

Erroneous Beliefs Verbalized While Playing Online Poker

“…In poker, emotions related to the players' interpretations of the game situation concerning chance and skill have a considerable influence on their subsequent behaviours (Barrault, 2012;Bjerg, 2010;Lévesque, 2017;Moreau et al, 2020a). A poor decision made under the influence of strong negative emotions is a phenomenon called ''tilt,'' and is often caused by an unexpected loss (Moreau et al, 2016;2020b;Palomäki et al, 2014).…”

“…A poor decision made under the influence of strong negative emotions is a phenomenon called ''tilt,'' and is often caused by an unexpected loss (Moreau et al, 2016;2020b;Palomäki et al, 2014). With tilt, players end up feeling frustrated because they believe that they have experienced an injustice because of chance and can seek a rapid recovery of their losses (Moreau et al, 2016;2020a;Palomäki et al, 2013). Since such a comeback is not always possible, players end up accumulating losses instead of gains (Griffiths et al, 2010;Moreau et al, 2020a).…”

“…With tilt, players end up feeling frustrated because they believe that they have experienced an injustice because of chance and can seek a rapid recovery of their losses (Moreau et al, 2016;2020a;Palomäki et al, 2013). Since such a comeback is not always possible, players end up accumulating losses instead of gains (Griffiths et al, 2010;Moreau et al, 2020a). Tilt is said to share certain features with problematic gambling since players experience losses of control, negative feelings and chasing (Moreau et al, 2016;2020a).…”

El consumo de loot boxes como una nueva forma de azar en los videojuegos

“…El consumo de las cajas botín parece estar asociado a consecuencias negativas en los jugadores (Schwiddessen y Karius, 2018;Zendle et al, 2018;, sin embargo, los efectos específicos, tanto a corto como a largo plazo, todavía no han sido suficientemente estudiados. No obstante, dado que las loot boxes pueden ser consideradas como una forma de juego de azar (Griffiths, 2018), algunas de sus consecuencias podrían ser extrapolables, entre ellas, la culpabilidad (Sleczka y Romild, 2020), la pérdida de control (Moreau, Chauchard, Sévigny y Giroux, 2020) y la sensación de malestar (Oksanen, Savolainen, Sirola y Kaakinen, 2018). En la investigación realizada por Yücel et al (2019) puede encontrarse una revisión pormenorizada de los elementos claves de la adicción.…”

“…Específicamente, se hipotetiza que un mayor nivel socioeconómico (Meduna et al, 2019), un mayor número de horas de juego (Li et al, 2019), observar a otros jugadores abrir cajas (King et al, 2018) y la inclusión de nuevos ítems (ej., aspectos de armas, personajes) se asociará con una mayor compra/gasto; y 2) Analizar los efectos del uso abusivo de loot boxes sobre la salud psicoemocional de los jugadores. Concretamente, se plantea que, dadas las similitudes entre las cajas botín y el juego de azar tradicional, los jugadores que compran loot boxes y no obtienen el artículo deseado experimentarán emociones negativas similares a las de los jugadores de azar, como culpabilidad (Sleczka et al, 2020), pérdida de control (Moreau et al, 2020) y sensación de malestar percibido (Oksanen et al, 2018).…”