A thin opening, hole or groove in something, such as a door or piece of wood. Also: a slot machine

A slot is an electronic device that accepts cash or paper tickets with barcodes, which are then scanned. The machine then spins a series of reels or displays symbols on a screen and pays out credits according to the paytable. Many slots have a theme, such as a particular style or location, and the symbols and bonus features are aligned with that theme. Most slots are operated by levers or buttons (physical or on a touchscreen), although some modern machines use a random number generator instead of a physical lever.

Casinos want to maximize their all-important slot revenue, but they do not want to kill the golden goose by increasing prices too much. Thus, they are hesitant to increase the house advantage of slot machines because they fear that players can detect hidden price increases in the game’s feedback and motivational effects (Griffiths & Parke, 2005; Haas & Edworthy, 1996). However, if casinos increase the frequency of wins but not the size of wins, they risk alienating loyal customers who would otherwise remain satisfied with the low price of the product. This is called the “price elasticity of satisfaction” phenomenon. However, in recent studies we have found that a key dimension of enjoyment in slot play is not the intensity or magnitude of rewards but rather the consistency and predictability of reward.