Losing control due to strong negative emotions elicited by elements of the game, and the resulting reduced quality of poker decision making, is commonly known as tilting. Game elements that often elicit negative emotions and induce tilting include (but are not limited to) i) losing in a situation where losing is perceivably highly improbable (encountering a bad beat), ii) prolonged series of losses (losing streaks), and iii) factors external to the game mechanics, such as fatigue, or “needling” by other players. Evidence suggests that tilting is a very prominent and common cause of superfluous monetary losses for many poker players (Browne, 1989; Hayano, 1982; Tendler, 2011). Superfluous losses during tilting often result from chasing (of one’s losses), which refers to out-of-control gambling behavior where players attempt to quickly win back the money that was previously lost (see Dickerson & O’Connor, 2006; Lesieur, 1984; Toneatto, 1999, 2002). Tilting essentially represents an overt condition where emotions have a direct and detrimental influence on poker decision making.
This thesis on poker players has a section on it: