The lottery has a long history as a popular way for people to win money, but the numbers game behind it is complex. From the ancient shabby black box to the current Powerball and Mega Millions billboards that promise instant riches, lottery draws on our innate desire to gamble for the ultimate prize.
Many people employ strategies that they think will improve their odds of winning, but these tactics don’t always work as advertised. Harvard statistics professor Mark Glickman recommends playing a few different games in order to increase your chances, and buying Quick Pick tickets so you can’t select a specific sequence of numbers. He says it’s also a good idea to play random numbers rather than ones that have sentimental value, like your birthday or children’s ages. He explains that when people play numbers that have significant meaning to them, there’s a higher chance that other players will also choose those same numbers and then you’ll have to split the jackpot with other winners.
The bottom quintile of the income distribution is most likely to play the lottery, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re winning. It can be a regressive tax because they’re spending a larger proportion of their disposable income on lottery tickets. But it may be a rational choice for these individuals if the entertainment value and other non-monetary benefits of winning are high enough. For a few people, lottery wins can truly rewrite their lives.