Skill and Luck Questionnaire

Abstract

The Skill and Luck Questionnaire (SLQ) is a brief psychological instrument developed in 1997 by Herman, Gupta, and Derevensky to assess an individual’s perception of the relative contribution of skill versus luck required for success across a variety of activities. The scale is frequently utilized in research concerning problem gambling prevention, as it helps identify cognitive distortions, specifically the Illusion of Control, where individuals overestimate the role of skill in outcomes determined purely by chance.

The instrument measures self-reported attributional biases regarding whether success is viewed as internal (skill-based) or external (luck-based). This assessment is critical for understanding cognitive vulnerabilities related to risk-taking and pathological gambling behaviors.

Keywords

Skill, Luck, Attribution Theory, Illusion of Control, Gambling Cognition, Problem Gambling, Psychological Scale, Risk Perception, Herman, Gupta, Derevensky.

Authors

Herman, Gupta, Derevensky.

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the SLQ is to quantify the subjective attribution of outcomes across different domains. By requiring respondents to rate both skill and luck independently for the same activity, the instrument captures how individuals perceive the locus of control—whether success is primarily due to internal factors (skill) or external factors (luck).

The scale is particularly valuable in clinical and preventative psychology, specifically for assessing cognitive vulnerabilities associated with gambling behavior. High skill attribution to games of chance (like the lottery or bingo) is a key indicator of cognitive errors that precede or maintain problem gambling. The scale helps educators and clinicians measure shifts in these beliefs following intervention programs.

Construct

The SLQ measures perceived Causal Attribution, specifically examining the dimensions of internal (skill) versus external (luck) factors as applied to performance outcomes. This core construct aligns closely with broader social psychological frameworks, such as Attribution Theory, focusing on how individuals explain successful results.

Crucially, the instrument is designed to detect the Illusion of Control, a cognitive bias where individuals believe they can influence outcomes determined purely by chance. The scale includes items ranging from pure chance (lottery) to pure skill (school), allowing researchers to quantify the discrepancy in skill ratings for activities objectively based on chance, which is central to understanding vulnerability to problem gambling.

Validity

While specific psychometric validation studies focusing solely on the SLQ are often embedded within larger gambling prevention program evaluations, the scale demonstrates strong face validity. Its items directly address the core conceptual difference between competence-based activities and chance-based activities, which is central to the study of gambling-related cognitive distortions.

The scale has shown predictive validity in distinguishing between high-risk and low-risk gambling populations. Studies utilizing the SLQ, such as those conducted by Turner, Macdonald, and colleagues, confirm that higher skill attribution to random outcomes correlates significantly with increased involvement in and risk for compulsive gambling behavior. The scale’s ability to measure changes in these attributions also supports its utility in evaluating intervention efficacy.

Reliability

Reliability metrics (such as internal consistency measures like Cronbach’s Alpha) for the full 7-item scale are typically reported within specific research studies employing the instrument. Given its structure as a multi-domain attribution measure rather than a single homogeneous trait scale, reliability is often assessed for subscales (e.g., skill attribution total score vs. luck attribution total score).

Research contexts, especially those focused on prevention curricula like the 2008 study by Macdonald, Turner, and Somerset, suggest adequate test-retest reliability when used as a pre- and post-test measure to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions aimed at correcting attributional errors regarding chance and skill. This stability over time supports its use in longitudinal studies tracking the impact of educational programs.

Factor Analysis

Formal factor analysis often reveals two primary, yet conceptually distinct, factors corresponding to the structure of the scale: 1) the perception of Skill involvement across activities, and 2) the perception of Luck involvement across activities. These two components are measured independently for each item, typically resulting in 14 raw scores (7 items x 2 attributes).

Further analysis often separates items into categories based on the objective nature of the activity (e.g., pure chance activities like bingo/lottery versus mixed activities like poker/baseball, and life outcomes like school/success). This structure allows researchers to specifically isolate the “misattribution of control” factor relevant to pathological gambling by examining the difference score between perceived skill and objective chance for pure gambling activities.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire, Attributional Scale.

Format: 7 items, scored using two parallel 7-point Likert scales (one for Skill, one for Luck) for each activity. Scale anchors range from 1 (None) to 7 (A lot).

Language Available: Primarily English.

Population Group: General population, adolescents, young adults, and individuals involved in gambling prevention programs.

Age Group: Typically utilized with adolescents and adults.

Population Details: Developed for use in studies investigating cognitive distortions and risk factors among youth concerning the onset of problem gambling behaviors, particularly in educational settings.

Test Methodology: Respondents rate the degree of skill and luck needed for success in seven specified activities, providing a quantitative measure of their attributional biases.

Keywords

Attributional Bias, Cognitive Distortion, Gambling Research, Prevention Curriculum, Locus of Control, Skill Perception, Luck Perception.

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not provided in source.

Correspondence Address: Not provided in source.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: 1997 (Original formulation by Herman, Gupta, & Derevensky).

Permissions/Fee: The instrument is often included within public domain research materials related to problem gambling prevention curricula, suggesting general accessibility for academic use. The scale can be found on page 40 of the 2008 report: Life Skills, Mathematical Reasoning and Critical Thinking: Curriculum for the Prevention of Problem Gambling. The original PDF can be downloaded here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18095146.

Reference’s

Herman, G., Gupta, R., & Derevensky, J. (1997). Skill and Luck Questionnaire.

Macdonald, J., Turner, N.E., & Somerset, M. (2008). Life Skills, Mathematical Reasoning and Critical Thinking: Curriculum for the Prevention of Problem Gambling. Final Report to the Ontario Problem Gambling Research Centre. Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. Available online at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18095146

Turner, N.E. & Liu, E. (1999, Aug). The naïve human concept of random events. Paper presented at the 1999 conference of the American Psychological Association, Boston.

Macdonald, J. & Turner, N.E. (2000, Oct) The prevention of problem gambling using education, modeling and drama. Paper presented at the conference of the National Council on Problem Gambling, Pennsylvanian, Oct.

Macdonald, J. & Turner, N.E. (2001, April). The development and testing of an experimental approach to preventing problem gambling. Paper presented at the 2001b, conference of the Canadian Foundation on Compulsive Gambling.

Macdonald, J. & Turner, N.E. (2002, Oct). The prevention of problem gambling using education, modeling and drama. Paper presented to the 14th National Conference on Problem Gambling. Philadelphia, PA.

Turner, N., Littman-Sharp, N., Zengeneh, M. & Spence, W. (2002). Winners: Why do some develop gambling problems while others do not? Available at www.gamblingresearch.org.

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Items of the Skill and Luck Questionnaire

For each of the following activities, how much skill do you think is involved in doing well? How much luck is involved in doing well?

1) How much skill and luck are needed to be good at baseball?

2) How much skill and luck are needed to be good at bingo?

3) How much skill and luck are needed to be a good video game player?

4) How much skill and luck are needed to be good at blackjack or poker?

5) How much skill and luck are needed to do well at school?

6) How much skill and luck are needed to be good at playing the lottery?

7) How much skill and luck are needed to be become a success in life?