Poker Shrink

Dr. Tim Lavalli, a doctor of research psychology shares his thoughts on the psychological side of poker. From gameplay issues, to problems away from the table, if its in a poker player's head - you'll find it here.

• The Poker Shrink Vol. 57: Adaptation

  April 27, 2009,

  Things change at a poker table. Players get tired. They get short-stacked or big-stacked. Blinds go up, antes kick in. Players bust out and are replaced by new players....

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 56: The Just-noticeable Difference

  April 20, 2009,

  There is a concept in psychology called the Difference Threshold, which is commonly referred to as...

   

• Poker Shrink Vol. 55: Interference

  April 13, 2009,

  Interference has to do with recalling previously known information. There are events that can and do interfere with our ability to have an accurate recall. In poker, this is often a problem...

   

• Poker Shrink Vol. 54: Successive Approximations

  April 06, 2009,

  I was playing poker the other evening and after losing yet another hand, the young player next to me mumbled: "Man, I just can't put that old guy onto a hand....

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 53: The Just-World Phenomenon

  March 30, 2009,

  The just-world phenomenon is the psychological tendency for people to believe that the world is just or fair and that people therefore get what they deserve. We all hold this belief to some extent, so when something good happens...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 52: The Butterfly Effect

  March 23, 2009,

  Psychology is, at least in part, about teaching us how to effectively cope when life deals us setbacks. There are many ways to deal with life's little problems. One particularly effective way is perspective. Putting...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 51: Implosion

  March 16, 2009,

  Last week I wrote about rehearsal and suggested that rehearsing particularly difficult decisions at the table would make those decisions easier, with less chance of a player giving off any physical tells...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 50: Rehearsal

  March 09, 2009,

  Rehearsal is exactly what you think it is: practicing something, often repeatedly, before you need to perform the act. We most often think of actors rehearsing scenes or lines of dialog and this is a perfect example...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 49: Transference

  March 02, 2009,

  One of the most common and most important aspects of psychological therapy is the concept of transference. In very basic language, there are times in our various relationships when we 'transfer' our own needs, desires...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 48: Blocking

  February 23, 2009,

  Sometimes it surprises me just how often our basic instincts overrule our really big brain. Early experiments showed that behavioral scientists could condition rats and pigeons to recreate certain behaviors on cue...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 47: Convergent/Divergent Thinking

  February 16, 2009,

  Who doesn't marvel as Daniel Negreanu makes those unbelievable reads on television? I mean, who doesn't want to say, 'I am folding my quads to your royal flush,' and be right? But be careful, trying to be as good...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 46: Attribution Theory

  February 09, 2009,

  Attribution theory describes the way in which people explain both their own behavior and that of others. According to this theory, people tend to see either internal or external causes as the determining factor...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol. 45: The Premack Principle

  February 02, 2009,

  While observing children in the '60s, David Premack noticed that some parents used one behavior to reinforce another. For example, your son likes to play video games but does not like to clean his room. You, the parent, want...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 44 -- Gall's Law

  June 08, 2007,

  A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that worked. A complex system designed from scratch never works and cannot be patched up to make it work. You have to start over with a working simple...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 43 -- Anecdotal Evidence

  June 01, 2007,

  Anecdotal evidence is information you obtain from a subjective report, an observation, or some kind of example that may or may not be reliable. In addition, anecdotal evidence is not scientifically valid or representative of testable...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 42 -- The Pareto Principle and the Ninety-Ninety Rule

  May 25, 2007,

  There is a somewhat humorous but all too true rule in business often called the 'Ninety-Ninety Rule.' There are literally hundreds of variations of the Ninety-Ninety Rule in business and other creative endeavors. In computer...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 41 - Cognitive Dissonance: Learning from the Bad Beat

  May 18, 2007,

  Can you really learn from a bad beat? I mean, can you learn something other than the guy in the three seat is a donkey and the poker gods hate you?...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 40 - The Titanic Syndrome

  May 11, 2007,

  I guess this article should be called "Teddy and the Titanic Syndrome" but let's not get ahead of the story. Teddy is a poker playing buddy of mine. Last week he asked me if I had heard of the Titanic Syndrome....

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 39 - Is There Psychology in the Poker Chip Trick?

  May 04, 2007,

  Why do players do chip tricks? The easy answer, of course, is that they are bored and they have chips available. Being creatures with opposable thumbs we tend to twirl pencils, click pens and basically do anything with our hands...

   

• The Poker Shrink, Vol 38 - Reading a Player with Clusters

  April 27, 2007,

  Everyone wants to be able to read an opponent at the table but what does it mean when he riffles his chips? Why did she smile when she made that bet on the turn? Is that nervous twitch really a tell and if it is does it mean he has a good hand...

   

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