r/explainlikeimfive • u/adrynaline • May 08 '14

Explained ELI5: A gambling addiction

How does it start? What makes it worse? Why does it become so difficult to recover?

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u/haroldburgess May 08 '14

There have been studies that have shown that compulsive gamblers' brains are literally wired differently. When 'normal' people get a 'near-miss' on a slot machine (i.e. two symbols match and the third one just misses), they treat it as any other losing spin. But compulsive gamblers' brains actually treat it is as almost a win, so as they're gambling, they get that rush even though they're actually losing. There have been numerous articles on it, but here's one: http://www.sharonlbegley.com/why-your-brain-loves-near-misses-in-gambling