The Powerball jackpot for Wednesday night is up to a record-breaking $500 million – but as the jackpot grows, your chances of winning that money decreases. We're examining why more people step up to play despite their shrinking odds of hitting the big time.
One of the biggest reasons, obviously, is that if you don’t play, you can’t win. Dropping $2 a ticket takes you away from the zero-percent probability of winning to 1 in 292 million. It’s a start.
Experts in behavior and mental health say the choice to buy a ticket also ties into a cultural phenomenon known as the “fear of missing out” – which can inspire people to make choices they normally wouldn’t.
“I think it’s the excitement of not wanting to be left out – and the fantasy of, ‘What if I won?’” Mental health counselor Kimble Richardson said. “Bigger numbers, more attention, more press and more media does get our attention and we’re apt to talk about it more, think about it more and then participate more.”
Kimble also says it’s not that smaller jackpots around $10 million are too small for people. The motivation to buy a ticket on a big jackpot ties back in to the attention drawn to it.
“With all the hype I’ve heard on the news today, I think I may buy one on my way home, just for fun,” Allie Bishop, a local community member, told us.
We interviewed several people around town to find out what their motivation would be for buying a ticket, among other topics. Watch our video in the player above for the full story.
-----
Follow Candice Aviles on Twitter: @CandiceAviles | Facebook: Candice Aviles
