A gambling device that accepts cash or, in “ticket-in, ticket-out” machines, paper tickets with barcodes. The machine then rearranges the symbols on its reels to create a winning combination and award credits based on its paytable. The symbols vary, but classics include bells, stylized lucky sevens, and card suits. Most slot games have a theme, which guides the design of the symbols and bonus features.

While the vast majority of gamblers are recreational players, a small subset experiences serious problems associated with gambling. These problems can range from financial debt to interpersonal difficulties and professional struggles. (Blaszczynski, Sharpe, Walker, Shannon, & Coughlan, 2005). Because slots are one of the most popular gambling devices in casinos, understanding how they affect player behavior is critical to mitigating harms.

In this study we asked 122 players to play a single-reel slot machine and reported their feelings as they watched the reels spin, stopping to reveal symbols. We also measured their monetary win and loss to determine their level of reward reactivity. We found that the PRP measure of reward reactivity was negatively correlated with PGSI scores and uncorrelated with depression scores, supporting the notion that it is an important factor in enjoyment of slot games. However, the results are limited by several limitations. In particular, the lack of auditory feedback following a spin and the absence of visual feedback during the actual process of gaining or losing credits makes it difficult to assess reward processing.