This course focuses on the application of psychological knowledge to gambling behaviors. Topics include motivations, decision-making strategies, cognitive heuristics and biases, group and social influences, and pathological addictive gambling behaviors.              

1. Students will be able to describe the principles, concepts and theories central to the discipline of psychology of gambling; 2. Students will be able to articulate the theoretical framework for the understanding how the psychology impacts people’s tendency to gamble; 3. Students will be able to critically read and evaluate information from the Internet, books, the popular press, journals, and other sources regarding the gambling industry from the perspective of psychology of gambling; 4. Students will be able to appreciate the philosophy of the mythological approach to the study of psychology of gambling; 5. Students will be able to identify the business/policy implications of psychology of gambling.