Making a living online: Problem gambling and workaholism in high earning online Texas hold'em poker players

Gambling as Work: A Study of German Poker Players

The study addresses the question whether professional gamblers can be considered an occupational group from a sociological perspective. It combines survey data on poker players from the German state North Rhine-Westphalia with sociological theory in order to explain the oxymoron of professional gambling. The descriptive analysis of the survey data is supplemented by ego-centric network data of the poker players to analyze whether hobby and professional players maintain different forms of social relationships. Even when semiprofessionals and professional players are grouped together for the purpose of comparative analysis, they fulfill the criteria of occupational groups according to Salaman's major work on the topic. The study points to the fact that more research on occupational groups outside of the common fields is needed and bridges the gap between the literature on serious leisure and sociological research on professions and professionalization.

Connection Between Poker Playing and Problem Gambling with Sociodemographic Factors and Other Gambling Activities

Many variables predisposing to gambling and problem gambling are already known. Yet, little is still known about the factors associated with poker, which is one of the most popular and the fastest growing areas of gambling, especially among young people. The aim of our study was to identify the relationship of selected sociodemographic factors with playing poker and problematic gambling. The other gambling activities was also included. The results of the regression analysis demonstrated that the following variables were connected with playing poker: place of residence (p < 0.001), mother's education (p = 0.004) and that of father (p = 0.046), material status, both of family of origin and current, and financial independence (p < 0.001). The risk of problem gambling is higher in case of players with low assessment of their own current material status (p = 0.028) and those who are financially dependent (p = 0.046). The risk level of problem gambling is also associated with the poker players' involvement in: slot machine games, sports betting, Totalizator Sportowy (Lotto) games, casino games (for all variables, the significance level is p < 0.001). The acquired data helped us to identify the groups most exposed to playing poker and excessive involvement in the game and may contribute to the development of appropriate prevention programs to protect persons belonging to the risk group.

Ability to Discriminate Online Poker Tilt Episodes: A New Way to Prevent Excessive Gambling?

Tilt is a very common term in online poker players' vocabulary, it describes a state where the player is no longer able to make rational decisions because they are overwhelmed by strong emotions. This study aims to explore the relation existing between the frequency of Tilt episodes, the player's perception of these episodes and excessive gambling in online poker. The sample is composed of 291 adult French-speaking online poker players. All participants completed an online self-assessment questionnaire. The results of the classification analysis showed that the sample could be divided into three groups. The first group, named ''players in control'' included low excessive gambling tendencies with low perceived and measured Tilt frequencies. The two other groups showed high measured tilt levels, with perceived tilt levels that were different from the measured levels. Furthermore, these two groups present a moderate usage risk of developing an excessive gambling tendency in a money-based game of chance. These results show the existence of a relation between the player's capacity to perceive tilt and the online poker player's behavior.

Psychopathology of Online Poker Players: Review of Literature

Background and aims Online Texas Hold'em poker has become a spectacular form of entertainment in our society, and the number of people who use this form of gambling is increasing. It seems that online poker activity challenges existing theoretical concepts about problem gambling behaviors. The purpose of this literature review is to provide a current overview about the population of online poker players. Methods To be selected, articles had to focus on psychopathology in a sample of online poker players, be written in English or French, and be published before November 2015. A total of 17 relevant studies were identified. Results In this population, the proportion of problematic gamblers was higher than in other forms of gambling. Several factors predicting excessive gambling were identified such as stress, internal attribution, dissociation, boredom, negative emotions, irrational beliefs, anxiety, and impulsivity. The population of online poker players is largely heterogeneous, with experimental players forming a specific group. Finally, the validity of the tools used to measure excessive or problematic gambling and irrational beliefs are not suitable for assessing online poker activity. Discussion and conclusions Future studies need to confirm previous findings in the literature of online poker games. Given that skills are important in poker playing, skill development in the frames of excessive use of online poker should be explored more in depth, particularly regarding poker experience and loss chasing. Future research should focus on skills, self-regulation, and psychopathology of online poker players.