Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 29, 2026
07:47
Measuring Delay Discounting in Humans Using an Adjusting Amount Task
Published on: January 9, 2016
Personal relative deprivation, delay discounting, and gambling
Mitchell J Callan1, N Will Shead, James M Olson
1Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Colchester, United Kingdom. mcallan@essex.ac.uk
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|August 31, 2011
Summary
Personal relative deprivation increases gambling urges by enhancing the desire for immediate rewards. This study reveals how feeling deprived can lead to prioritizing smaller, sooner gains over larger, later ones, influencing gambling behavior.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Behavioral Economics
Background:
- Research links personal relative deprivation (PRD) to gambling.
- Psychological mechanisms underlying this link remain underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of desire for immediate rewards as a mediator between PRD and gambling.
- To test the hypothesis that PRD increases gambling urges and behavior via heightened preference for smaller-sooner rewards.
Main Methods:
- Four studies employed complementary approaches to examine psychological mechanisms.
- Methods included experimental manipulation of PRD, delay-discounting tasks, and mediation analysis.
- Participants ranged from students to community gamblers.
Main Results:
- Experimental PRD increased preference for smaller-sooner over larger-later rewards.
- Reduced willingness to delay gratification correlated with increased gambling behavior.
- Preference for immediate rewards statistically mediated the relationship between PRD and gambling urges.
Conclusions:
- The desire for immediate rewards is a key psychological mechanism linking PRD to gambling.
- Findings suggest interventions targeting delay discounting may help reduce gambling behavior in deprived individuals.
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