A computerized slot machine simulation to investigate the variables involved in gambling behavior

The present paper describes a computerized slot machine simulation designed to examine many of the potential variables involved in gambling behavior. This program was created in Visual Basic Version 6.0 and is designed to run on any Windows 95 or higher equipped computer. The program allows for expe rimenter manipulation of probabilities of payoffs, visual display of potent ial winning symbols, exact sequences of wins and losses, as well: as pose m en time questions to the subject on prespecified,trials. The program record s data on a trial-by-trial basis to a text file for easy importation into m any data analysis and statistical programs. Conceptual and experimental que stions that may be addressed with the described program are also discussed.