what is gambling addiction Flashcards
defined
- Gambling is the staking of money (or something of financial value) on a future event
on which the outcome is unknown (Griffiths, 1995). - Gambling is not a unitary phenomenon (Griffiths & Calado, 2022).
Perkins (1950) identified four types of gambling:
1. Gaming: Exchange of money during the activity (e.g. fruit machine, roulette)
2. Betting: Staking money on a future event (e.g. horse racing)
3. Lotteries: Distribution of money by lot (e.g. football pools)
4. Speculation: Gambling on the stock market (e.g. investing in shares)
prevalence
(Dellosa & Browne, 2024; Gambling Commission, 2023; 2024)
* UK Adult:
- 0.5%
- 3.8% ‘at-risk’
- 7% harmed by others’ gambling
- UK Aged 11-17:
- 1.5%
- 1.9% ‘at risk’
- Europe: 1.3 %
- World: 1.9%
- Higher prevalence in young
adults (18-35), specifically males
problem vs addiction
any type of repetitive gambling that a person engages in that leads to (or aggravates) recurring negative consequences, such as significant financial problems, addiction, or physical and mental health
issues. Additionally, the individual’s family, social network, and community may also experience negative effects. The degree of harm can range from
inconsequential, to transient, to significant; harm can be episodic or chronic. (Abbott et al., 2018, p. 4)
- Problem gambling and gambling addiction are not the same.
- Individuals can experience harms, without having an addiction but
cannot have an addiction without harms. - Addiction can be preceded by harmful gambling.
- Someone may not reach the criteria for gambling disorder, but gambling
can still be detrimental. - Language use in the literature: emphasise the person first (Biggar &
Wardle, 2024
diagnosis
APA 2013
Persistent and recurrent maladaptive gambling behaviour as indicated by four (or
more) of the following (mapped onto the components model of addiction [Griffiths,
2005, 2019]):
1) Is preoccupied with gambling (e.g., preoccupied with reliving past gambling
experiences, handicapping or planning the next venture, or thinking of ways to get
money with which to gamble) (salience).
2) Needs to gamble with increasing amounts of money to achieve the desired
excitement (tolerance/mood modification).
3) Has repeated unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop gambling (relapse).
4) Is restless or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop gambling (withdrawal).
5) Gambles as a way of escaping from problems or of relieving a dysphoric mood (e.g.,
feelings of helplessness, guilt, anxiety, depression) (mood modification).
6) After losing money gambling, often returns another day to get even (“chasing” losses).
7) Lies to family members, therapist, or others to conceal the extent of involvement with
gambling (conflict).
8) Has jeopardised or lost a significant relationship, job, or educational or career
opportunity because of gambling (conflict).
9) Relies on others to provide money to relieve a desperate financial situation caused by
gambling (conflict).
gambling and suicide
Withdrawal symptoms are linked to past suicide attempts in people with gambling disorder.
Financial distress increases suicidal ideation, making it crucial to assess financial problems when evaluating suicide risk in GD patients.
Suicide risk assessments should be included in gambling disorder evaluations, especially for those experiencing financial difficulties.
sick leave
Mansson et al., 2023-
examined the association between gambling addiction and long-term sick leave. Analyzing data from 2,830 individuals diagnosed with gambling addiction, researchers found an 89% higher risk of long-term sick leave compared to those without the disorder. This underscores the significant impact of gambling addiction on work ability and financial stability
also highlights issues with gambling research- “The study shows that we need to detect gambling problems at an earlier stage in health care and at workplaces and increase access to help for affected people so that they can break negative trajectories earlier. Gambling addiction risks going unnoticed, and the problems can become extensive before they are noticed and diagnosed in health care, something that this study shows,” says Viktor Månsson.
The next step in the research is to continue to develop methods for earlier detection of gambling addiction and to educate healthcare professionals about the problem, Yasmina Molero explains.
“As gambling addiction is often a long-term problem, it will also be important to follow people over an even longer period, for example up to ten years, to find out more about the long-term consequences for those affected and their environment.”
