RPG and gambling - any connections?

[Thod]

I'm not sure if this is best in the advice section or here in the general discussion area. Advice looks much more play related - so I post it here.

One of my new players has a long background of addiction problems. He is a great guy, brings fun to the table and I like him as a player.

A while ago he relapsed into gambling. It was shortly after he had started gaming at my table. I did ask myself at that time - does a RPG gaming table offer a 'introductory drug' as it shows it is 'safe' to play or maybe that it was just unrelated?

I checked on him tonight to ask for game night tomorrow. I was shocked to learn he relapsed again. He can't afford it. The only good news in missing the game tomorrow - he is meeting up for a self-help group.

I don't mind that he misses a game - I like to give him all support I can. But it raised a question in me again - is there a connection between gaming (RPG) and gambling.

Input welcome. Anyone who knows better here?

[Ender_rpm]

Only in the mind of the addict. I could MAYBE see an outside correlation based on choice of table games (ie Craps) but even then, its a stretch. Addiction is its own motivator, you didn't enable this guy.

[Justin Ricobaldi]

I want to say I read an article somewhere that actually was about scientists that discovered that gamers have slightly larger risk/reward centers in their brains and that similar sized centers could be found in professional gamblers and people who have gambling problems. Or it was something like that.

[DM_aka_Dudemeister]

I've seen the opposite, gamers like to control outcomes. Their decisions need to matter more than the dice. Gambling is the opposite of RPGs, there's a lack of control, but lots of external stimulus. RPGs (at least on the tabletop) are about exercising control and imagined stimulus.

[Thod]

Thanks everyone for the Input so far.

It is important for me to help that person. A night spent at my gaming table means a night not spent elsewhere. And an important part of RPG is the group at the table and interactions there.

I just want to ensure I'm not inadvertently give him some reason to start gambling again when he is off my table.

[Diego Rossi]

My personal opinion is that there is a very tiny connection. A gambler generally play for the adrenaline rush when he take a risk. Some player enjoy the same kind of rush while playing a RPG (or a computer game) so playing a RPG can be a reminder of why he enjoy gambling. At the same time it can be a safe way to enjoy the rush without losing money.
It all depend on the single subject, internet psychology is highly questionable.
You could ask the opinion of the guy that is helping your friend, if your friend consent to that.

[NobodysHome]

I would guess that gamers would become accustomed to random chance (one of my players just fumbled 4 times in 5 rooms!), and would be *LESS* likely to gamble because they would be better aware of the outcomes.

Of our group of 10 gamers, NONE particularly like to gamble. (I can't say none of us gamble at all, because I play the lottery, but I consider that a 'daydreaming tax' and never expect to actually get a return. I'm pleasantly surprised when I get a dollar back, because I'm very conscious of the odds.)

However, addictive behavior is NOT rational. I have intelligent, rational friends who nearly destroyed their lives through drug addiction, so I know where you're coming from.

I agree, however, with the basic tenet that:
(1) A night a roleplaying is a night he's not out gambling, and
(2) I have never heard, seen, or read evidence that roleplaying encourages gambling, ESPECIALLY if you avoid having any gambling establishments in the game (a given, I hope).

[Caius]

Depends on what triggers it. If he's a heavy table player, it's would not be unusual that the act of rolling dice creates the desire. For recovering drug addicts something a simple as passing a street with the same name as the one they used to buy on can cause major cravings. If you're worried sit down and talk to him about it and explain you don't want to contribute to his problem so you want to make sure it isn't causing issues. It's really the only way to get a solid answer since there's a lot of complexity in what causes an addict duress.

[BYC]

I love gambling. I go to Vegas at least two times a year, and I usually go with about $1000-2000 in cash for gambling purposes expressly.

My games are craps, Ultimate Texas Hold-em, blackjack, and blackjack switch. I know and can play Pai-Gow, roulette, most forms of poker, Let It Ride, 3 card Poker, and Mississippi stud.

When I can visiting casinos on a weekend, I am very controlled and rarely play more than $200 per visit. When I am on vacation, I am much looser and play more widely, though still limited by my self-imposed cut-off (up to my $2000 limit). I take the free drinks at the casinos (with the $1 tip as the unspoken rule for the waitress), and I still make sound decisions.

For me, the thrill of gambling, and the science of the numbers, odds, and casino edge is what makes it fun for me. I can spend my $2000 on anything during a vacation, but with gambling, I have a chance to keep it or win a bit pass the original amount (which I have done). Career-wise, my Vegas trips (about 8 of them now since I've started going as a routine) I am down about $4000. I play games that have a good casino edge and is entertaining for me. Odds isn't really the way to examine gambling in a casino as much as the edge. I realized a few years ago that one of the reasons I enjoy RPGs, craps, and Heroclix was because they all used dice, and I LOVED rolling dice.

My personality and money sense are all very conservative however. I save a lot of money generally speaking and rarely make impulse purchases. I used to be more free with money, but I'm very tight with it in general with the exception of I spent a lot on eating out and fine dining.

[Haladir]

I don't know. If there is a connection, I would imagine that it's weak at best.

Personally, I don't enjoy gambling at all. I find most gambling games to be mind-numbingly boring. I'd rather watch grass grow than play roulette, or a slot machine, or a round of BINGO. I consider the lottery to be a voluntary tax on people who are bad at math. I'll play the occasional friendly game of nickel-ante poker, but if the stakes get any higher, I get so nervous about losing money that I just don't have any fun playing.

I guess I'm risk-averse by nature.

But I'm a very avid RPGer, and have been for 30 years, on both sides of the GM screen.

[Caius]

I really doubt any link is about a hard correlation between tabletop players and increased risk for gambling addiction/compulsion. It's possible that some action of the game causes a desire to return to gambling, but without talking to them you won't get anything.

[Liz Courts]

Moved thread.

[Drejk]

I played blackjack a few times in a casino for a low stakes and trying to gamble defensively - in fact I managed to get money for gaming convention by gambling once. It was also the time when I was quite careless as I could get away with more money but risked and lost half of the winnings getting a tenfold of invested cash instead of twentyfold :(

I don't gamble since that time - I feel chances to win are too slim and weren't in it for the rush. Like Haldir I am quite a risk-averse. I usually prefer to minimize loses than increase gains (well, except in RPGs but there I do not actually lose anything).

I was addicted to arcade vide games age ago, when they were of higher quality of computer games, however.

[Mike Mistele]

Not much of a connection, IME. In 30 years of playing RPGs (with literally hundreds of other players), I've played with a only handful who I'd classify as "more than casual" gamblers (and even those who do tend to be poker players, rather than other sorts of gambling). OTOH, most of the gamers I've played with seem to have no interest, whatsoever, in gambling.

Personally, I'm a market researcher, and a trained statistician. Gambling has zero appeal for me -- I know what those odds are like. :-)