Does the Lottery Promote Gambling?
Lottery is a form of gambling in which numbers are drawn at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw it, while others endorse it and organize state or national lotteries. Because lotteries are run as businesses with the goal of maximizing revenues, advertising necessarily focuses on persuading people to spend their money on them. This promotion of gambling raises questions about whether or not lottery operations are at cross-purposes with the public interest. It also raises concerns about whether or not they promote gambling among the poor, problem gamblers, and other vulnerable groups.
The casting of lots has a long history in human culture, including numerous examples in the Bible and Roman times. But the earliest recorded lotteries were not for material gain; they were simply as a party game—often during the Roman Saturnalia festival, with tickets given away to guests in exchange for gifts or other entertainment—or as a means of divining God’s will. By the fourteenth century, however, lotteries had begun to be used for material gain. And by the sixteenth, it was common in the Netherlands for towns to hold a regular lottery that distributed town funds.
Today’s lotteries are a far cry from those of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. They are now a massive business that generates billions of dollars annually from the sale of tickets. They are available everywhere, from gas stations to convenience stores and even some supermarkets like Stop and Shop. They also offer many options, from scratch-off tickets to multi-state games like Powerball and Mega Millions.
Despite the fact that most people’s chances of winning are slim to none, lottery players continue to buy tickets in large numbers. While some of this can be attributed to the inextricable human impulse to gamble, there’s much more at play here. For one, lotteries dangle the promise of instant riches in an era of inequality and limited social mobility. Moreover, they are not above taking advantage of the psychology of addiction. Everything from the design of the tickets to the math behind the odds is designed to keep players coming back for more.
What’s more, a significant percentage of ticket buyers are not just regular players; they are the super users—those who purchase multiple tickets every week and often play several different types of games. The super users are the primary source of revenue for state lotteries, which get 70 to 80 percent of their income from only 10 percent of their users.
While it’s easy to argue that these super users are not representative of the broader population, there’s no doubt that they are highly influential in determining the shape of the lottery industry. And, because the evolution of state lotteries is a classic example of public policy being made piecemeal and incrementally with no overall overview, the interests of low-income populations, compulsive gamblers, and other vulnerable groups are seldom taken into consideration. In fact, few states have any coherent “lottery policy.” Rather, they are driven by the pressure to generate revenue and the constant clamor for new games.