Stanford Study Shows Sex Stimulates Gambling
The slogan "sex sells" has been a statement of instinctive knowledge for many years, and it applies especially so in the world of casino gambling, where skimpily-dressed servers compete with exotic showgirls to distract players from their concentration. Now, science has proven that sexual stimuli do cause subjects to gamble more freely.
A study undertaken by Stanford University has found that heterosexual men, when confronted with erotic images, are more likely to tke financial risks, and to increase the size of the risk. Brian Knutson, assistant professor of psychology at Stanford, stated,"This is the first study to demonstrate that emotional stimuli can influence financial risk-taking."
Knutson found that, regardless of the particular bet being proposed or the history of the player in relation to the game, sexual imagery increased the likelihood of the subject wagering.
Knutson had previously demonstrated in a 20005 study that monitoring of brain activity could predict whether people were about to take financial risks; now he has proof that those decisions can be influenced by non-relevant stimuli.
Knutson also stated that the outside stimuli worked best in a situation involving time pressure; therefore, more so for a casino at a blackjack table than a used-car dealer, whose customer may take some time to think clearly.
If this study reaches the desks of casino management, it may be assumed casinos will emphasize eye candy more than ever, which allows those who lose money to at least have more memorable visuals from their entertainment. The bonding of strip clubs and Strip casinos may come soon, with any luck.
