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Enjoying Your Work Richard Brislin |
Odds are good that
risk-taking friends
encourage gamblingIn last Monday's column, I reviewed research findings regarding group influences on people's willingness to make decisions that involve risk. If people place a value on taking risks, discussions with group members will intensify this tendency. If people value a conservative approach to decision-making, discussions with group members will move them even further in this direction. This research assumes that people associate with others who share similar worldviews based on ethnicity, education, residence in the same neighborhood and occupation.
Whenever issues of risk and decision-making arise, discussions often move toward their relation to legalized gambling. Many people from Hawaii travel to Las Vegas and Reno and risk money in the hopes of winning more. Others, who themselves do not gamble, are fascinated by the amount of travel to Nevada and liken it to pilgrimages. What's the difference between the two groups?
I should mention that my experiences with casino gambling are very limited. On a trip to Australia, I played the 1-cent slots in a casino along the Gold Cost. I wagered about 10 cents in all and can't remember if I came away a winner or not. People who know me will say, "Yup, sounds just like him!"
People who travel regularly to Vegas are willing to take risks. They often have friends who make the same trip. So when one person is contemplating a trip, there will almost surely be relatives and friends who say, "Great idea! Maybe this is the time you'll win big!" Consequently, the person has his or her initial tendency reinforced and is more likely to take the trip than to visit the Getty museum in Los Angeles. On the other hand, people who do not gamble regularly often associate with people who have similar outlooks.
At the University of Hawaii, for instance, I know very few people who gamble regularly. Most faculty members I know are well versed in statistics. If I told them that I was considering a trip to Vegas but thought that San Francisco might be more interesting, they would reinforce this inclination. They would say: "You're right to lean toward Frisco. Keep in mind that most people who gamble in Vegas lose money. They did not build the Venetian and the Luxor by making sure that people left Vegas with more money than they came with!"
Some people who are willing to take risks find other outlets for their motives other than gambling. For example, people may attach their risk-taking propensities to an entrepreneurial venture in the business world. If they are good writers, they may turn down a salaried job and instead hope for royalties from magazine articles or novels. Or, they may find an outlet in certain sports such as parachute jumping, surfing 15-foot waves or motorcycle racing. As with the examples of gamblers and people who have never seen the inside of a casino, these risk takers are likely to have friends who share the same interests and who will urge the individuals to move ahead with their plans.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
The purpose of this column is to increase understanding of human behavior as it has an impact on the workplace. Given the amount of time people spend at work, job satisfaction should ideally be high and it should contribute to general life happiness. Enjoyment can increase as people learn more about workplace psychology, communication, and group influences.
Richard Brislin is a professor in the College of Business Administration, University of Hawaii. He can be reached through the College Relations Office: cro@cba.hawaii.edu