The relationship between gambling flow and sympathetic nervous system activity

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Author(s): Murch, W. Spencer ; Ferrari, Mario A. ; McDonald, Brooke M. ; Clark, Luke

Journal: Frontiers in Psychology

Year Published: 2020

Date Added: September 29, 2021

Gambling flow is a state of total immersion in the activity of gambling. Many people experience gambling flow while playing on electronic gambling machines (EGMs). Gambling flow is often measured with self-report measures such as questionnaires. It would be valuable to assess flow in other ways. The researchers of this study wanted to know if there was a relationship between flow and sympathetic nervous system activity. They used data from three experiments in which undergraduate men gambled on an EGM for 15 minutes. The researchers found that sympathetic nervous system activity changed in the first 5 minutes of gambling, and this corresponded with self-reported experience of flow. However, the direction of this change was different across the three studies.

Citation: Murch, W. S., Ferrari, M. A., McDonald, B. M., & Clark, L. (2020). Investigating flow state and cardiac pre-ejection period during electronic gaming machine use. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, Article 300. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00300

Article DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00300

Keywords: dark flow ; Electronic Gambling Machines (EGMs) ; gambling ; gambling-related harm ; heart rate ; slot-machine gambling

Topics: Game Types ; Information for Operators ; Slots and VLTs

Conceptual Framework Factors: Psychological Factors ; Biological Factors

Study Design: Experimental: NRCT (non-randomized controlled trial)

Geographic Coverage: Canada, British Columbia

Study Population: Undergraduate men who were at least 19 years old and without problem gambling (total participants = 218 across three studies)

Sampling Procedure: Voluntary response sampling (online advertisements were posted, and people who were interested could participate in exchange for a course credit or $15)

Study Funding:

This research was funded by the Centre for Gambling Research at UBC, which is funded by the Province of British Columbia and the British Columbia Lottery Corporation.