Why do people gamble?:Not because they win, says Emily Oster 2 By Marcy Homer Special to the Gazette Have you ever purchased a lottery ticket thinking, “Maybe this time the big winner will be me?
” Do you play the same lottery numbers every week because you believe that as soon as you change them, they are sure to be the winners? Emily Oster ’02, became intrigued by these questions in her class on behavioral economics. A paper on the demographics of lottery behavior sparked Emily’s interest in the players of Powerball, the multistate lottery with two drawings each week, and started her thinking about possible thesis topics. When Oster discussed her thesis ideas with Alvin Roth, George Gund Professor of Economics and Business Administration, he agreed the Powerball Lottery would be a worthwhile and interesting topic, adding that Powerball is at “the nexus of economics, psychology, and pop culture.” To get a start on her thesis research over the summer, Oster applied for and received a Harvard College Research Program (HCRP) grant with Roth as her adviser. The HCRP grant covered her personal expenses and 2 million pieces of Powerball data from Connecticut. With Roth’s guidance, O
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