Is Problem Gambling Genetic?: 2

The Northwestern study on the DNA mechanisms that make people more likely to have a gambling problem revealed very interesting results. The study made some very interesting links that had never before been made. There was a link found between two genes that can vary from person to person. Their primary purpose is to regulate dopamine and serotonin neurotransmission, but now those two gene variants may be what makes someone more likely to take a risk in a financial investment, like playing at an online casino. Playing at online casinos seems relatively harmless, so how does this affect the recreational player? The players that higher levels on those two genes showed that they invested in their online casino wager significantly more than those who did not.

Those same players invested less of their money when the risk was lower and was considered more of a safer bet. This caused the researchers to come to the conclusion, that players who have more money also risk more money than the other players. The original purpose of this study was to study the mind of the financiers and their ability to take such great financial risks but it turned out that it proved some things about online casino players. The study was conducted with a sample of Northwestern students who were told to take an amount of real money to make their own investments and their DNA and choices were studied without informing the student what the study was about. The professors in charge were able to use their neuroscience technology and marry it with psychology. Camelia M Kuhnen who is the assistant professor of finance and Joan Y. Chiao who is the assistant professor of psychology were the co investigators of this study.