Scratch cards are a popular form of gambling. They are sometimes referred to as paper versions of slot machines. Like slot machines, scratch cards reveal winnings instantly, allow for continual play, and include near-misses. A near-miss is an outcome that comes close to a win, but falls short. On a scratch card, a near-miss would involve uncovering two out of the three required jackpot symbols to win a prize. Therefore, the gambler comes close to the jackpot win, but falls short.
Past research has found that slot machine near-misses have similar effects as winning, even though they are actual losses. Near-misses are physiological arousal to gamblers. This may lead to further play and increase time and money spent on gambling. Past research has also found that slot machine manufacturers have designed slot machine games to include more near-misses than would be expected by chance alone.
Given the many similarities between slot machines and scratch cards, the current study examined whether scratch card games might be designed to include more near-misses than would be expected by chance alone.
