Does a huge Lotto Max jackpot raise the potential for problem gambling? Experts weigh in

Millions of Canadians will throw $5 in Tuesday for a shot at winning the $80-million Lotto Max jackpot.

It’s a staggering top prize, one with an equally staggering one-in-33 million chance of winning it.

Since it started in 2009, Lotto Max has been the “big win” lottery game in Canada with massive jackpots in return for a more expensive $5 ticket. Lotto 6/49, by comparison, costs $3 per play.

Nigel Turner, a scientist with the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), said it’s the kind of prize that has the potential to entice even those who don’t regularly gamble to buy a ticket.

“The psychology of lotteries is ‘eyes on the prize,'” he said. “It’s about getting them to think about what’s going to happen if they win. The bigger the prize gets, the bigger the dream.”

Ontario’s Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) doesn’t hide the fact they’re selling dreams. One scripted ad campaign features a “dream coach” who suddenly appears to counsel lottery players as they dream aloud about how they’d spend the loot if they actually won. The dream coach repeatedly asks them to enhance their winning fantasy, in one example by upgrading dreams of a summer home into a sprawling villa. The ad’s tagline is “dream to the max.”

So can that dreaming turn into problem gambling?

Turner said research shows that lottery games such at Lotto Max and Lotto 6/49 aren’t typically the type of games embraced by problem gamblers.

“Generally speaking, lotteries are the least problematic form of gambling,” he said.

He said this is because lotteries don’t offer enough personal control over the outcome. Also, the wait between draws lacks the rapid fire results of a slot machine simulator on a smartphone app.

“It’s not benign in any sense but relatively speaking, when you consider the huge number of people who buy lottery tickets — which is over 60 per cent of the population — the percentage of those people who have a serious problem is tiny,” said Turner.

The national Lotto Max lottery has bigger jackpots, which experts say can often entice those who don’t typically gamble to buy a ticket. (The Canadian Press)

As proof that lottery tickets aren’t without risks, Turner said he once interviewed a man who lost more than $80,000 playing lottery games. Turner said the was a trained financial auditor who falsely believed he’d discovered trends in past draw results that would boost his chances of winning.

“I can tell you that I’ve studied the numbers to see if there’s anything that can predict the next winner and there isn’t,” said Turner.

 Lotteries a gateway to ‘more problematic’ gambling

Jeffrey Derevensky, a retired professor who studied and wrote problem gambling at McGill University, agrees lottery tickets aren’t the biggest problem when it comes to problem gambling. However, he said people who identify lottery games as their primary form of gambling account for eight per cent of calls to gambling help lines.

Derevensky said lotteries can become a gateway to more problematic forms of gambling.

“We do know that the bigger the jackpot, the more likely people are to play the lottery,” said Derevensky. “And there is a group of gamblers who play the lottery excessively.”

So what are the signs that buying lottery tickets may have gone from a bit of fun to a serious problem?

Turner identifies these three indicators:

• Betting more than you can afford: “The definition of having a problem is when you feel compelled to buying when you can’t afford to do so,” he said.  

• Believing you’re “due” for a win: This happens when the bettor falsely thinks that because they’ve lost a certain number of times, they’re statistically more likely to win. “If you believe you’re due for a win, stop,” said Turner. “You’re never due for a win because random chance doesn’t work like that.” 

• Using the ‘big win’ dream as an escape from life’s problems: “If you begin to think this dream of a big win is your escape route from life, you’ve got a problem,” said Turner.

If you think you might need help

OLG offers these resources for anyone who thinks they might have a gambling problem.

Ontario’s Problem Gambling Helpline is 1-888-230-3505.