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An Examination of Factors Driving Chinese Gamblers’ Fallacy Bias

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Abstract

Gambling is a leisure activity, which is enjoyed by many people around the world. Among these people, Chinese are known for their high propensity to gamble and are highly sought after by many casinos. In this exploratory study, the effect of two types of fallacy bias—positive recency and negative recency—on the betting behavior of Chinese gamblers is investigated. Although the influence of fallacy bias on a betting decision is well documented, little is known about the interaction of the factors that dictate fallacy bias. Drawing from an analysis of 2,645 betting decisions, the results show that Chinese gamblers primarily endorse positive recency, especially when the latest outcome is more frequent. This is contrary to most findings on Western subjects in which negative recency is more common. Current findings have meaningful implications to casino gaming entertainment businesses and public policymakers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Hotel and Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 17 Science Museum Road, TST East, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China

    Lawrence Hoc Nang Fong & Rob Law

  2. Faculty of Business Administration, University of Macau, Av. Padre Tomás Pereira S.J., Taipa, Macau SAR, China

    Desmond Lam

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Correspondence to Lawrence Hoc Nang Fong.

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Fong, L.H.N., Law, R. & Lam, D. An Examination of Factors Driving Chinese Gamblers’ Fallacy Bias. J Gambl Stud 30, 757–770 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-013-9390-9

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