Can playing poker be good for you? Poker as a transferable skill

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Can playing poker be good for you?
Poker as a transferable skill
Adrian Parke, Mark Griffiths, & Jonathan Parke,
Nottingham Trent University, United Kingdom.
E-mail: mark.griffiths@ntu.ac.uk
Introduction
In late 2004, we were approached by an on-line gaming company
to examine the skills involved in playing poker (both on- and off-
line) and to assess to what extent the skills involved had any
transferability to real-life situations. This provided an interesting
challenge and we would like to share our speculations (as there
was little in the way of empirical research to utilise).
Poker savoir-faire
Much of poker's appeal is due to the fact that, unlike many other
forms of gambling, the scope to influence the outcome is vast. Put
simply, it is primarily a game of skill. Although some of the
necessary skills can be inherent (such as emotional intelligence,
i.e., the ability to process emotional information, particularly as it
involves the perception, assimilation, understanding, and
management of emotion), many of the more idiosyncratic skills are
only acquired through experience. As a result, successful poker
players will always seek to improve by being critical of their own
play and assimilating a behavioural repertoire of opponents' playing
styles. Some sense of humility is required.
Successful poker players must show consistent voracity (i.e.,
greed). Profitable players need to view the game as a financial
exchange rather than a social entertainment activity. This includes
micromanagement of their "stack." In other words, they should not
play loosely simply because they have the chip lead. They
shouldn't differentiate pots based on the level of action or
entertainment value. A "pot won is a pot won" and each one is
important. Poker is a zero sum game—the pot won must not be
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graded only by how much it increases the player's stack, but by
how it affects the chip position with the opponents. A stack is
primarily built by consistently grinding out small wins rather than by
making erratic, high-risk plays.
Another skill that experienced poker players acquire is to realise
their boundaries. This is applicable to several areas. Firstly, they
must choose a game which suits their bankroll. Put simply, they
should not play at a table where they are forced to play their blinds
based on pot odds. Secondly, they should play at a level where
they can keep their head above water (i.e., players should walk
before they can run). A cheaper way to gain experience from the
experienced players rather than "sitting" with them is to simply
observe the profitable players at the high-stakes table. The final
parameter is for players to know when they are beaten. Conceding
defeat in a battle does not equate to losing a war. The war in poker
consists of hundreds of battles. For players to use all of their
"ammunition" in a battle they are unlikely to win is bad strategy.
Control
At a fundamental level, what separates good (professional)
gamblers and novice or problem gamblers is the factor of self-
control. The general rule of thumb for players is to avoid becoming
emotionally involved in the game. Inducing emotional (rather than
logical) reactions from gamblers is what makes the gambling
industry so profitable. By remaining unemotional, players can
protect themselves from recklessly chasing losses and avoid going
on "tilt." On-line gamblers are particularly at risk from engaging in
chasing losses for the simple reason that they have 24-hour access
and are constantly subjected to temptation. Furthermore, they often
lack a "social safety net" to give objective appraisals.
There are ways to avoid becoming emotionally engaged. These
include reflective "time-outs" and having an objective attribution of
outcomes. Reflective time-outs equate to playing slowly and
making gambling decisions with accrued knowledge (i.e.,
knowledge of probability and of opponents). It is advisable after a
"bad beat" for players to be disciplined enough to sit out one or two
hands to regain composure before playing again. Extending the
concept further, it is probably wise after a particularly ineffectual
session to suspend play for an elongated time-out. Reckless and
unintelligent play by knowledgeable players emerges from not
being able to deal with frustration appropriately.
Determining objective attributions of outcomes involves players
having an external locus of control when assessing the cards they
have, and an internal locus of control regarding what they do with
the cards available to them. The mantra of poker players is, "You
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can only play the hand you were dealt." All players will experience
streaks of desirable and poor hands, and it is how players respond
to these streaks which will determine their success. It is very easy
for players to become frustrated while in a negative streak. It is also
easy in a positive streak to become narcissistic and complacent. It
is the knowledgeable player who understands probability and who
realises that over a continuous playing period streaks (both positive
and negative) are inevitable and transient.
On-line poker playing
On-line poker and off-line poker are not synonymous. A very useful
tool in poker is to "read" players through their body language and
their verbalisations. In on-line poker, gamblers are denied this
advantage, so they must seek to manipulate opponents by the
tools at their disposal. The key is to take a weakness (i.e., not
being able to physically see other players) and turn it into an
advantage (i.e., using this nontransparency). On-line poker permits
gamblers to create a false identity. Gamblers could portray
themselves as young attractive novice female players when in fact
they are actually very experienced recognised professionals. The
key to a "hustle" or manipulating other players in poker is for
gamblers to project a character and hide their identity. Essentially,
it is about representing a façade, whether for one hand or the
whole game. Gamblers can adopt any "character" they wish to suit
any game in which they engage. Perhaps in the case of playing
with novices it may be profitable for gamblers to portray themselves
as experienced professionals in order to intimidate players into
submission.
Using the Internet relay chat band provided, gamblers may find it
easier to develop their personas. The tone and pitch of what
gamblers say is not revealed in text, so fundamentally they are
acting with their most unemotional "poker face." Put simply, they
can exude confidence as they go all in on a bluff, when in reality
their hands might be shaking and they may be sweating. The key
to winning is inducing emotional reactions from other players. With
knowledge of their opponents, it is possible for gamblers to "tailor"
interactions to induce the desired response.
On-line social interaction at the poker table is not confined to
adversarial chastising. It is possible to develop amiable
relationships between players. On-line poker—particularly at low-
stakes tables—is often more about entertainment than profit. In
poker, it is not necessary to reveal your hand if nobody calls (i.e.,
pays to see it). Without seeing cards it is more difficult to
understand player behaviour. However, at more sociable tables,
people will reveal what they had to opposing players, if for nothing
else than to indulge the observers. Creating false "alliances" is a
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way for gamblers to ascertain more information about their
opponents and improve their ability to "read" them.
Poker and transferable skills
Poker—both on- and off-line—requires many skills and abilities.
Below are some of the traits and skills we speculate are needed to
be a successful poker player and the characteristics needed to be
a good poker player. We argue that all of these can be utilised in
other contexts to bring about success in other areas of peoples'
lives, particularly in the areas of employability and future success
within that job.
zCritical evaluative skills: The ability to appraise information
and situations realistically, and to anticipate problems and
difficulties, is vital in poker. To critically evaluate your playing
decisions ("did I play that right?") and those of others is
common. These are also essential skills in the workplace—
particularly in management.
zNumerical skills: The ability to handle and interpret
numerical and statistical information is an important skill in
many areas of employability. In poker, there are many levels
of numerical skill, such as the micromanagement of funds—
every penny is important—or the cards themselves. Not many
jobs require mathematical wiz-kids but many decision-making
judgements can be based on the balance of probability or the
ability to interpret data summaries.
zPragmatism skills: The ability to make the best of a nonideal
situation and to work within preset constraints is a valuable
skill in poker. For example, players need to accept what they
cannot change (their cards) and play with what they have.
Pragmatism is an undervalued skill within the workplace—
most probably because it is more of an inherent skill than
something that is learned. Success in almost any job will
require good use of pragmatism.
zInterpersonal skills: Knowledge of the mechanisms of social
communication and the potential sources of interpersonal
conflict can be the difference between a good and a great
poker player. Being able to identify an opponent's "tell" can
pay huge (financial) dividends. Having good interpersonal
awareness is not the same as being socially skilled (although
it contributes). Interpersonal skills contribute to emotional
intelligence, i.e., how to respond to different people in
different situations. Interpersonal awareness skills in the
workplace can make a difference in understanding and
dealing with interpersonal problems. They may also help in
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telling whether colleagues are lying or trying to be economical
with the truth.
zProblem-solving skills: The ability to identify different
strategies and approaches is of great benefit when playing
poker. Problem-solving skills in the workplace are extremely
important to anyone wanting to be successful in their career,
especially when they are tied in with pragmatism skills.
zGoal orientation skills: The ability to set goals and to
formulate strategies to achieve those goals can be of benefit
while playing poker. Being hungry and insatiable in the desire
to achieve (i.e., winning) is a common characteristic of good
poker players. Having goals gives people a purpose, which is
very valuable in the workplace. It allows people to measure
their success in some way, just as the poker player does
when winning or losing.
zLearning skills: The ability to continuously learn and not rest
on your laurels is a valuable skill in poker (as it is obviously in
almost all areas of life). In poker, being humble enough to
learn from those more experienced and to take others'
expertise into future games is akin to other learning
experiences in other environments—including the workplace.
In poker, such learning can bring about objectivity. For
instance, poker players should not act in haste but ponder
and deliberate responses objectively. In essence, this is
continuing professional development. It doesn't matter what
walk of life you find yourself in—learning from others is
paramount.
zHigher-order analytic and strategic skills: The ability to
extract general principles from immediate or concrete
situations and to formulate appropriate strategies can be very
important while playing poker. For example, good poker
players know not to let the cards get them frustrated or not to
fight battles they can't win. There are clear parallels in the
workplace, including office politics.
zFlexibility skills: The ability to adapt to any situation or to be
opportunistic when a situation presents itself underlies skills
in flexibility. In poker, adapting to your environment (e.g., who
are you playing against, how big is your stack) comes with
playing experience. The ability to look from several points of
view is not something that can necessarily be taught but is
certainly a valuable skill to an employer.
zFace management/deception skills: The ability to
knowingly deceive someone is not normally seen as
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desirable, but in poker it is all part of the game. Good acting
ability is needed to demonstrate poker face, bluffs, etc. The
telling of nonverbal white lies is important here. In some
situations in the workplace, such skill will be of great
importance. Telling white lies to keep face or to be diplomatic
is a good example. There are also many situations that
employers have to bluff in order to succeed (e.g., in giving a
presentation to the board or being interviewed for a dream
job). While such skills are not encouraged, they can certainly
be of great benefit to the employee.
zSelf-awareness skills: The ability to play to strengths and
acknowledge weaknesses is a common trait in many walks of
life. In poker, such skills can be very important. For example,
skilful poker players remember that bad luck doesn't always
last and good luck definitely doesn't last. Poker players also
know that there is no room for apathy or complacency (in
winning or losing streaks). In the workplace, self-awareness
skills will help employees succeed in areas of strength and
delegate in areas of weakness.
zSelf-control skills: The ability to act with a cool head under
pressure and to show the nerve and the mettle to cope under
adversity is critical in good poker playing. Quite clearly, in the
workplace, many team leaders and managers need such
skills in order to get the most out of themselves and their
teams. Such skills are also important in terms of stress
management.
Many of these skills are transferable to other arenas and are the
kinds of abilities and traits that will help people achieve in the
workplace and aid promotion. Diplomatic use of white lies can aid
employees in a variety of situations and can help smooth over (or
disguise) mistakes and errors.
This article was not peer-reviewed. Submitted: October 1, 2004.
Accepted: January 12, 2005.
For correspondence: Professor Mark Griffiths, International Gaming
Research Unit, Psychology Division, Nottingham Trent University,
Burton Street, Nottingham, NG1 4BU, U.K. Phone: 0115-8485528,
fax: 0115-8486826, URL: http://ess.ntu.ac.uk/griffiths/, e-mail:
mark.griffiths@ntu.ac.uk.
Contributors: AP and JP collaborated on the initial half of the article
and MG wrote the last half.
Competing interests: None declared.
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Mark Griffiths, PhD, is professor of gambling studies at the
Nottingham Trent University. He is internationally known for his
work into gambling and gaming addictions and was the first
recipient of the John Rosecrance Research Prize for "Outstanding
scholarly contributions to the field of gambling research" in 1994,
winner if the 1998 CELEJ Prize for best paper on gambling, and
2003 winner of the International Excellence Award for "outstanding
contributions to the prevention of problem gambling and the
practice of responsible gambling." He has published over 150
refereed research papers, two books, numerous book chapters and
over 350 other articles. In 2004 he was awarded the Joseph Lister
Award for Social Sciences by the British Association for the
Advancement of Science.
issue 14 — september 2005
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