Subconscious Link Between Smoking and Gambling

There is a "hypnotic" reason Nevada has yet to prohibit smoking in casinos.

The anti-tobacco movement has gained considerable momentum during the past 15 years resulting in the adoption of government policies, taxes and procedures designed to limit usage.  Yet, there remains an oasis where smokers can still congregate and light up hassle-free – Las Vegas casinos.

The Washington Post recently published an interesting article that explores why the state of Nevada has been so reticent when it comes to banning tobacco use in casinos.  As you may have suspected, it is about money.

The article cites a 2014 report by Deutsche Bank that suggests a ban in Nevada could lead to a 7.5 percent decline in gaming revenue during the first year.

Here is the hypnosis angle.  Research organizations affiliated with the gaming industry suspect that smoking reinforces the trance-inducing rituals associated with gambling.

A 2002 study published by the scientific journal Addiction found that “daily smokers gambled on more days and spent more money gambling; they also ‘craved’ gambling more and had lower perceived control over their gambling.”

The subconscious mind influences us each and every day.  That influence can be directed in positive ways, such as stress mitigation, confidence building, healthy eating habits, and athletic and academic performance.

Or, the subconscious can be tasked for more nefarious means, such as gambling and smoking.

I say go positive!

Hypnotic Practices of the Movie and Gaming Industries

Sights, sounds, colors and motion help slots "hypnotize" players.

Certain industries thrive because of the adoption of hypnotic techniques.

Think for a moment about the movie theatre experience.  You sit in a comfortable chair, in a dark room with your attention fixated on the screen.  It’s a situation conducive for becoming lost in the story. 

 

Hollywood refers to this as the suspension of disbelief.  Yet, it is merely a form of hypnosis.

This past Sunday, the Washington Post published an article entitled Slot Machine Sounds Can Manipulate Players, Researchers Say that overviewed recent research about how our minds process the sounds and sights of slot machines

Behavioral neuroscientist Michael J. Dixon of the University of Waterloo in Ontario explained that slot machine noises can easily trick a person into believing they have won, even when the outcome is lost money.  As a result, a player is more inclined to continue to thrust coins into the slot.

The gaming industry has perfected the practice of hypnosis to stimulate risk taking.  Bright rooms, energetic sounds, no windows or clocks, and oxygen pumped in through the vents.

When introducing hypnosis as a tool for stress management, confidence, health and well being, I’m often greeted with a bit of skepticism.  “I can’t be hypnotized,” some will say.  “That will never work on me,” others will argue.

It’s true -- all of hypnosis is self-hypnosis.  For it to be effective, a person has to be open and desire to achieve a deep level of focus, concentration, creativity and relaxation.

We’re all hypnotizable though.  It happens to each of us several times every day when the conditions are right.  Movie studios and casinos understand that.