2 ms·
It's being down on his luck that did it. I read something a while ago that the reason why many poor people do stupid things (like spend large amounts on the lot
by arjie 13y ago
It's being down on his luck that did it. I read something a while ago that the reason why many poor people do stupid things (like spend large amounts on the lottery) is that they tend to have poor judgement in general. However, the poor judgement arises from the poverty. When you are highly stressed about money, you find it hard to think rationally, apparently.
- Crito 13y agoI am not convinced that adequately explains the correlation. The poor may gamble away an irrational amount of their money because they are too stressed to think rationally, but it may also be the case that the endorphin hit that gambling gives them offers them a sort of temporary escape. Gambling addiction looks, at least on the surface, to have a lot in common with addiction to substances. I agree with your general premise, hardship probably does drive people to attempt the irrational, but I think gambling isn't necessarily a great example of this since there is likely more going on there.