Why Slot Machines and Even Video Game Loot Boxes Are So Hard to Walk Away From

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    Most people obviously understand that gambling can be addictive, but psychology helps explain the why behind why it’s so effective at keeping people playing for extended periods. B. F. Skinner found that behaviors that are reinforced on a variable/ratio schedule are among the hardest to get rid of. This type of system provides the user with rewards after an unknown number of play throughs or responses, so the person playing is always anticipating the next win. Slot machines are built around this principle to keep people hooked, and many video games are now using similar systems that effect the players in ways very much like slot machines; with the inclusion of loot boxes, card packs, and randomized rewards. Even though players may lose many times in a row through a session they will keep playing due to possibility of winning on the next attempt.

    What’s so interesting is that these reinforcement principles were originally discovered through laboratory studies with animals but now are being used to intentionally rake in billions of dollars from people that are susceptible to this. I understand that gambling and gaming can be fun and forms of entertainment to many, but I question the fact companies are allowed to design products that knowingly take advantage of people. Skinner showed us that variable/ratio schedules end up in highly persistent behavior, but he doubt he imagined people implementing these concepts this way. Learning theory does not just explain behavior; it can also help us recognize when our own behaviors are being manipulated.




Zendle, D., & Cairns, P. (2018). Video Game Loot Boxes Are Linked to Problem gambling: Results of a large-scale Survey. PLOS ONE, 13(11). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0206767




McLeod, S. (2025, March 17). Operant conditioning: What it is, how it works, and examples. Simply Psychology. https://www.simplypsychology.org/operant-conditioning.html


What Slot Machines Can Tell Us About Our Brains. (n.d.). Www.youtube.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fpj43qwSmtg

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Comments

  1. madden ziomekJune 23, 2026 at 9:32 PM

    This is super interesting! I used to work at an arcade, and I would see people try machines that they weren't winning time and time again just because they had gotten a prize before. A lot of the machines were rigged so only a certain amount of people would win a day, but that never stopped anybody from trying. Good post!

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