Guatemalan Gambling

Rocky, my host brother, pays his Q5 (about $0.60) and asks for three more cards. He gets them, grimaces, and then leans back in his chair, disengaging from the game as the other three players at the table take turns discarding unwanted cards in hopes of receiving better ones. The rain outside rattles the corrugated tin roof. My other host siblings, Clayton, Hiroshima, and Donaldo, continue playing and bet-up the pot to about $1.50 before laying their cards on the table to see who has the strongest hand. Hiroshima smiles as she extends her arms to rake-in the small pile of bills that look like money taken from a game of Monopoly. They have been playing 5-card draw for almost an hour and I have been observing for about as long. Unlike Texas Hold'em, arguably the most popular card game in the U.S.A., 5-card draw requires little skill and a lot of luck. You pay to get your cards, you pay to play, exchange weak cards in search of stronger ones, and then have a round of anemic betting followed by the revealing of cards; no tells, no strategy, no gamesmanship. It's just you against the cards that happen to fall.

The next day, I stroll-down to the soccer field for my ten o'clock game. The usual suspects sit perched on the hill overlooking the field, ready to bet on the day's games. They all throw Q25 ($3) into the pot and bet on the numbers of combined goals that the two teams will score in the game. If one team scores two goals and the other team does not score, he who bet on two goals wins the pot, pretty straightforward. But instead of making calculated guesses on how many goals each team will score based on weather, team and player ability, and any other factors that speak to the gambler's skill at predicting the game, they throw five numbers into a hat (0-4) and blindly select numbers. If it's pouring rain and the teams have strong defenses but no offense, he who selects 4 goals has a slim chance of winning based on the probability given the conditions.

Just like 5-card draw, the soccer betting had little (if nothing) to do with skill, consideration, or ownership by the individual. They prefer to leave their fate to chance instead of taking ownership of it, or what anthropologists refer to as an external locus of control, the idea that one's fate is in the hands of some higher power. This is common with Guatemalans and relates to their relationship with God as well and the active role he/she plays in their lives. A common response one hears when asking about future plans or projects is that it depends on whether or not God will allow it.

Contrast this with the American internal locus of control: the belief that we control our fate. If we work hard enough, we will achieve what we set-out to achieve. Is that not the foundation of our country and the American dream? Returning back to the gambling analogy, why is Texas Hold'em so popular in the U.S.A.? Because it eliminates the aspect of luck to the greatest extent of any card game and success depends more on the gamesmanship and skill of the player. The same is true with sports betting. Americans would rather get smaller returns to predict the future in order feel like they have as much control over their fate as possible.

In the card playing instance, I offered to teach the table how to play Texas Hold'em. They said they already knew how to play, but preferred 5-card draw. They said Texas Hold'em is slow and boring. I tried to explain the contrasting elements of luck and skill between the two games, but they kept returning to the idea of getting lucky, which made 5-card draw much more exciting for them. In the soccer game instance, I asked the guys if they ever considered letting each person choose the number of goals he thinks will be scored and then splitting the winnings with any other person that chose the same. The answer was the same; it was not as fun because it reduced the element of luck.

These distinctive degrees of ownership are a subtle, yet profound, cultural difference made salient by the way Guatemalans gamble. Peace Corps taught us in training about external vs. internal locus of control, but with more emphasis on lives and careers. I do not think you can look at the different life outlook as better or worse, it is what makes a culture. Even the richest of Guatemalans attribute their fortune to God's willing their success. The claim that only the poor do not take accountability for their misfortune is false. The main difference might be that in a society where economic success does not come easily to the majority of the population, the majority has to believe that something has affected their luck so as not to feel like failures. Those who do "make it" are constantly surrounded by poverty and harsh living conditions, so they have to believe that some higher power willed them to be winners.