Gender and Poker

When a game is more than a game…

High-profile #MeToo headlines have pretty much stopped dominating the news cycle. Of course, the issue has not gone away.

The matter of gender discrimination high up in corporate circles also continues unabated.

Is it even possible to rid the human mind of biases like these?

Most psychologists maintain that discriminatory thinking — whether related to gender, race, ethnicity, age, or disability  — is  a matter of learned relational and social patterns, which are largely unconscious and shape our perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors.

At least one person has found a way to take advantage of that phenomenon as it relates to gender. Meet Maria Konnikova, psychologist and science writer at The New Yorker.

As part of her research for a book project, Dr. Konnikova learned to play poker.  She lived and breathed the game for quite a long time and became very good at it. So good that this past January, she beat 238 players in the PokerStars Caribbean  Adventure and won $84,600. Months later, she won over $57,000 at the Asia Pacific Poker Tour.

Unlike other strong poker players, Konnikova doesn’t have a background in mathematics or probabilities. She uses her understanding of the human psyche instead.

Think, gender. Most poker players are men. A woman at the tournaments Konnikova enters is rare, if not unique.

Konnikova’s advantage is that she understands sexism deeply and carefully “reads” her opponents. As she explains it, most men don’t see her as a poker player, they see her as a female poker player.

Often, Konnikova finds, the way they play a hand reflects their gender bias more than the cards they hold. In her own words, “[Men] think that I’m going to fold, that I’m going to be soft, that I’m an easy target…”  They soon discover she isn’t.

Here’s an example: When Konnikova has a poor hand, she may bluff, or bet aggressively. Most of the time she wins those hands. Why? Because, in her assessment, her opponent thinks women are not capable of bluffing and behaves accordingly.

Konnikova claims many men find folding, or forfeiting a hand, to a woman an insult to their masculinity. When Konnikova comes across this type of opponent, she never bluffs.

Do other factors give Konnikova the edge? Absolutely.

But at the very least, it seems men would help themselves by checking their gender bias at the door when they play mixed poker. Fortunately for Konnikova, most don’t….or can’t.

Poker is a game.

But gender bias is not a game. It is a symptom — a symptom of a People who are less than they could be because they deny themselves access to the intellect, energy, and creativity of their entire population….which includes Everyone.

Gender bias is self-destructive.…for all of us.

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Days children and parents have been separated from each other at the border as of 8/17/18: 120