Editing Gambler's fallacy (section)

==== Lottery players ====
[[File:Gamblers Fallacy Effect on Lottery.jpg|thumb|The effect of gambler's fallacy on lottery selections, based on studies by Dek Terrell. After winning numbers are drawn, lottery players respond by reducing the number of times they select those numbers in following draws. This effect slowly corrects over time, as players become less affected by the fallacy.<ref name=":2" />]]Lottery play and jackpots entice gamblers around the globe, with the biggest decision for hopeful winners being what numbers to pick. While most people will have their own strategy, evidence shows that after a number is selected as a winner in the current draw, the same number will experience a significant drop in selections in the following lottery. A popular study by [[Charles T. Clotfelter|Charles Clotfelter]] and [[Philip J. Cook|Philip Cook]] investigated this effect in 1991, where they concluded bettors would cease to select numbers immediately after they were selected, ultimately recovering selection popularity within three months.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last1=Clotfelter|first1=Charles|last2=Cook|first2=Philip|year=1991|title=The "Gambler's Fallacy" in lottery play|journal=National Bureau of Economic Research|pages=1–15}}</ref> Soon after, a 1994 study was constructed by Dek Terrell to test the findings of Clotfelter and Cook. The key change in Terrell's study was the examination of a [[Parimutuel betting|pari-mutuel]] lottery in which, a number selected with lower total wagers placed on it will result in a higher pay-out. While this examination did conclude that players in both types of lotteries exhibited behaviour in-line with the gambler's fallacy theory, those who took part in pari-mutuel betting seemed to be less influenced.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last=Terrell|first=Dek|date=October 1994|title=A test of the gambler's fallacy: evidence from pari-mutuel games.|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0167-6687(94)90729-3|journal=Insurance: Mathematics and Economics|volume=15|issue=1|pages=83–84|doi=10.1016/0167-6687(94)90729-3|issn=0167-6687}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right;"
|+ Table 1. Percentage change in numbers selected by lottery players based on Clotfelter, Cook (1991)<ref name=":1" />
| colspan="2" |
! colspan="5" |Amount  bet by lottery players
|-
! colspan="2" |Numbers drawn 14 April 1988
!Draw day
! colspan="4" |Days after draw
|-
!April
!Winner Numbers
|0
|1
|3
|7
|56
|-
|11
|244
|41
|34
|24
|27
|30
|-
|12
|504
|29
|20
|12
|18
|15
|-
|13
|718
|28
|20
|17
|19
|25
|-
|14
|323
|134
|95
|79
|81
|76
|-
|15
|640
|10
|20
|18
|16
|20
|-
|16
|957
|30
|22
|20
|24
|32
|-
! colspan="3" |Average percentage of players selecting previously winning numbers compared to day of draw
|78%
|63%
|68%
|73%
|}

The effect the of gambler's fallacy can be observed as numbers are chosen far less frequently soon after they are selected as winners, recovering slowly over a two-month period. For example, on the 11th of April 1988, 41 players selected 244 as the winning combination. Three days later only 24 individuals selected 244, a 41.5% decrease. This is the gambler's fallacy in motion, as lottery players believe that the occurrence of a winning combination in previous days will decrease its likelihood of occurring today.