This study mapped the geographical location and density of electronic gambling machines (EGMs) in Denmark and investigated whether gambling machines cluster in areas with specific socio-economic status (SES) characteristics. Using micro-area modeling and inverse probability weighted regression adjustments, the study was based on register data on SES, EGM location data and geographical grid data. Findings showed that EGMs were distributed throughout the country with some notable clusters in the larger cities. While identifying city-based hotspots, findings also indicated that pure population density offered merely partial explanations in term of EGM location. In terms of links between area-level SES and EGM density, the study found a significant and positive correlation between low level of SES and EGM density. This study could inform fine grained geographical risk localization and harm minimizing measures that transcends well-known administrative area classifications.
{"title":"The geography of gambling: A socio-spatial analysis of gambling machine location and area-level socio-economic status","authors":"Søren Kristiansen, R. Lund","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.2","url":null,"abstract":"This study mapped the geographical location and density of electronic gambling machines (EGMs) in Denmark and investigated whether gambling machines cluster in areas with specific socio-economic status (SES) characteristics. Using micro-area modeling and inverse probability weighted regression adjustments, the study was based on register data on SES, EGM location data and geographical grid data. Findings showed that EGMs were distributed throughout the country with some notable clusters in the larger cities. While identifying city-based hotspots, findings also indicated that pure population density offered merely partial explanations in term of EGM location. In terms of links between area-level SES and EGM density, the study found a significant and positive correlation between low level of SES and EGM density. This study could inform fine grained geographical risk localization and harm minimizing measures that transcends well-known administrative area classifications.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49638050","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
V. Cabrera-Perona, Daniel Lloret-Irles, Rosa Núñez Núñez
Despite the fact that minors have prohibited access to commercial gambling, and legislation trying to constrain gambling, an important proportion declares that they have bet either online, or by illegally entering gambling venues. This situation highlights the need to implement selective prevention programs that requires assessment tools to identify vulnerable groups. This paper aims to design and validate a scale of evaluation for the psycho-social characteristics that predict onset and maintenance of gambling behavior among adolescents. 2,716 students of Secondary Education, 15.12 years (± 1.03) answered a frequency, intensity and problematic gambling questionnaire and a scale to evaluate risk profiles. The resulting scale is compounded by 26 items classified in 4 sub-scales: Accessibility, Risk Perception, Normative Perception and Parental Attitudes. Internal consistency coefficients were: 0.668, 0.728, 0.746 and 0.818 respectively, and 0.811 for the total scale. Results offer a robust support on the structural validity and internal consistency of the Early Detection of Gambling among At-Risk Adolescents (EDGAR-A) Scale, a useful tool for the design and assessment of effective preventive interventions.
{"title":"Early Detection of Gambling Among At-Risk Adolescents. Validation of EDGAR-A Scale","authors":"V. Cabrera-Perona, Daniel Lloret-Irles, Rosa Núñez Núñez","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.5","url":null,"abstract":"Despite the fact that minors have prohibited access to commercial gambling, and legislation trying to constrain gambling, an important proportion declares that they have bet either online, or by illegally entering gambling venues. This situation highlights the need to implement selective prevention programs that requires assessment tools to identify vulnerable groups. This paper aims to design and validate a scale of evaluation for the psycho-social characteristics that predict onset and maintenance of gambling behavior among adolescents. 2,716 students of Secondary Education, 15.12 years (± 1.03) answered a frequency, intensity and problematic gambling questionnaire and a scale to evaluate risk profiles. The resulting scale is compounded by 26 items classified in 4 sub-scales: Accessibility, Risk Perception, Normative Perception and Parental Attitudes. Internal consistency coefficients were: 0.668, 0.728, 0.746 and 0.818 respectively, and 0.811 for the total scale. Results offer a robust support on the structural validity and internal consistency of the Early Detection of Gambling among At-Risk Adolescents (EDGAR-A) Scale, a useful tool for the design and assessment of effective preventive interventions. \u0000 ","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43250985","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Swarndeep Singh, Y. Balhara, D. Kattula, Ragul Ganesh, Rachna Bhargava, Bandita Abhijita, Amulya Gupta, A. Gupta
In this study, we aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the amount and pattern of screen time among college students. The relationship between increased screen time and quality of life (QoL), COVID-related stress, and personality traits were also explored. A cross-sectional online survey-based study was conducted among Indian college students who were recruited by purposive sampling. Details regarding socio-demographics, amount and pattern of screen time usage, change in screen time patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic, and COVID-related stress were collected. In addition, personality traits and QoL were assessed with validated questionnaires. A total of 731 responses (51% female, mean age 20.7 years) were analysed. Of the participants, 93.2% self-reported an increase in daily screen time during COVID-19. The predominant reasons for the increased screen time were educational screen time (89.6%), streaming or watching videos for entertainment (82.8%), use of social media for non-communication purposes (78.1%), communication with friends and/or family members (76.2%), reading or watching news (65.9%), and interactive recreational screen time (44.7%). A small but significant negative correlation between increased screen time and QoL (rs = -0.154, p < .001) was found. Increased screen time due to the use of social media for non-communication purposes was associated with poorer QoL (U = 32947.50; p = .02) and greater COVID stress (U = 32381.50; p = .01). Educational screen time was the most common cause for increased screen time among college students and was not associated with negative effects on QoL. The context and purpose of screen time appears to be important in ascertaining the impact of screen time on QoL.
{"title":"Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Screen Time: Findings From a Cross-Sectional Observational Study Among College Students From India","authors":"Swarndeep Singh, Y. Balhara, D. Kattula, Ragul Ganesh, Rachna Bhargava, Bandita Abhijita, Amulya Gupta, A. Gupta","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.9","url":null,"abstract":"In this study, we aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the amount and pattern of screen time among college students. The relationship between increased screen time and quality of life (QoL), COVID-related stress, and personality traits were also explored. A cross-sectional online survey-based study was conducted among Indian college students who were recruited by purposive sampling. Details regarding socio-demographics, amount and pattern of screen time usage, change in screen time patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic, and COVID-related stress were collected. In addition, personality traits and QoL were assessed with validated questionnaires. A total of 731 responses (51% female, mean age 20.7 years) were analysed. Of the participants, 93.2% self-reported an increase in daily screen time during COVID-19. The predominant reasons for the increased screen time were educational screen time (89.6%), streaming or watching videos for entertainment (82.8%), use of social media for non-communication purposes (78.1%), communication with friends and/or family members (76.2%), reading or watching news (65.9%), and interactive recreational screen time (44.7%). A small but significant negative correlation between increased screen time and QoL (rs = -0.154, p < .001) was found. Increased screen time due to the use of social media for non-communication purposes was associated with poorer QoL (U = 32947.50; p = .02) and greater COVID stress (U = 32381.50; p = .01). Educational screen time was the most common cause for increased screen time among college students and was not associated with negative effects on QoL. The context and purpose of screen time appears to be important in ascertaining the impact of screen time on QoL. \u0000 ","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46378058","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Drawing on sports betting, leisure studies and rationality concept provides information to understand how those training to be teachers are gradually gravitating towards gambling to the detriment of their studies at the university. A thorough analysis of 42 young male adults interviewed at betting shops in the university community revealed how they have become involved in sports betting activities for additional financial rewards. Results show that peer pressure is a strong persuader drawing new student teachers to sports betting activities, which makes it difficult for them to effectively focus on their studies. This has resulted in certain of the students getting poor grades, loss of concentration in class, strained relationships, increased exclusion or rejection from study groups, as well as significant negative effects on academic work, health and well-being, family, and society at large. This study recommends that stakeholders in education address this increasing social issue among young male adults through effective preventive strategy and educational promotion as an intervention to avoid thwarting the progress of the new educational reforms in Ghana.
{"title":"Understanding sports betting among young male student-teachers in Ghana","authors":"E. Acheampong, E. Sarpong, Memunatu Mahamah","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.8","url":null,"abstract":"Drawing on sports betting, leisure studies and rationality concept provides information to understand how those training to be teachers are gradually gravitating towards gambling to the detriment of their studies at the university. A thorough analysis of 42 young male adults interviewed at betting shops in the university community revealed how they have become involved in sports betting activities for additional financial rewards. Results show that peer pressure is a strong persuader drawing new student teachers to sports betting activities, which makes it difficult for them to effectively focus on their studies. This has resulted in certain of the students getting poor grades, loss of concentration in class, strained relationships, increased exclusion or rejection from study groups, as well as significant negative effects on academic work, health and well-being, family, and society at large. This study recommends that stakeholders in education address this increasing social issue among young male adults through effective preventive strategy and educational promotion as an intervention to avoid thwarting the progress of the new educational reforms in Ghana.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46519729","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
It has been determined that family members and relationship partners of persons with gambling disorders face a variety of problems. Since their problems have not yet been summarized in the literature, we conducted a scoping review to address this issue, and focused on the studies of problems faced by family members and partners of those with gambling disorders and studies on the effects of gambling problems on family members and partners. We searched electronic databases (PsycINFO, PubMed, and MEDLINE) and the reference lists of included studies published up to February 15, 2021 and extracted 2,760 studies. These studies were examined for eligibility, and yielded 101 items that met our predefined criteria, all of which were reviewed. Overall, this review found that (1) the presence of gamblers in families was related to increased gambling or other addiction related behaviors among family members; (2) a variety of intra-family conflicts were likely to arise between gamblers and their families and partners; (3) the presence of gamblers in families increased the risk of violence and abuse for family members, partners, and gamblers themselves; and (4) gambling problems generated a variety of physical and mental health problems in gamblers’ families as well as among others in their proximity. In the future, it will be important to establish beneficial support and treatment methods by using the difficulties identified by this review as outcomes in the treatment of gamblers, along with their families and partners.
{"title":"The Impact of Problem Gambling on Families and Relationship Partners: A Scoping Literature Review","authors":"T. Irie, Yokomitsu Kengo","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.1","url":null,"abstract":"It has been determined that family members and relationship partners of persons with gambling disorders face a variety of problems. Since their problems have not yet been summarized in the literature, we conducted a scoping review to address this issue, and focused on the studies of problems faced by family members and partners of those with gambling disorders and studies on the effects of gambling problems on family members and partners. We searched electronic databases (PsycINFO, PubMed, and MEDLINE) and the reference lists of included studies published up to February 15, 2021 and extracted 2,760 studies. These studies were examined for eligibility, and yielded 101 items that met our predefined criteria, all of which were reviewed. Overall, this review found that (1) the presence of gamblers in families was related to increased gambling or other addiction related behaviors among family members; (2) a variety of intra-family conflicts were likely to arise between gamblers and their families and partners; (3) the presence of gamblers in families increased the risk of violence and abuse for family members, partners, and gamblers themselves; and (4) gambling problems generated a variety of physical and mental health problems in gamblers’ families as well as among others in their proximity. In the future, it will be important to establish beneficial support and treatment methods by using the difficulties identified by this review as outcomes in the treatment of gamblers, along with their families and partners.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47178995","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
V. Marionneau, Gabriele Mandolesi, S. Rolando, J. Nikkinen
The comparative advantages of license-based and monopolistic gambling regimes have been discussed in previous literature from the perspective of their capacity to prevent harms, but less is known about the ability of different regimes to produce public revenue. Gambling is nevertheless an important source of revenue for public service provision. The current paper compares figures from the financial statements of two monopolistic gambling providers in Finland (Veikkaus) and Norway (Norsk Tipping), to four license-based companies operating in the Italian market (Snaitech, Sisal, Gamenet and HBG gaming) to analyze how much surplus they contribute to their host societies and what kind of factors these amounts depend on. The results show that overall, the Nordic monopolistic operations appear more effective in terms of producing gambling surplus to society than the Italian license-based companies. This difference is analyzed in terms of game product portfolios, operating costs, and levels of normal profit. The role of operating costs appears to be the most important factor explaining the lower surplus generated by Italian companies. However, the bulk of these operating costs are directed to the redistribution network which creates employment. If these employment effects are considered, both licensing and monopolistic regimes appear similarly effective. We conclude by problematizing the use of financial effectiveness as a measure for good gambling policy. High surplus collected for societies is also related to high overall gambling volumes that go against public health objectives of reducing harms.
{"title":"Does the System Matter? Surplus Directed to Society in Monopolistic and License-Based Gambling Provision.","authors":"V. Marionneau, Gabriele Mandolesi, S. Rolando, J. Nikkinen","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.3","url":null,"abstract":"The comparative advantages of license-based and monopolistic gambling regimes have been discussed in previous literature from the perspective of their capacity to prevent harms, but less is known about the ability of different regimes to produce public revenue. Gambling is nevertheless an important source of revenue for public service provision. The current paper compares figures from the financial statements of two monopolistic gambling providers in Finland (Veikkaus) and Norway (Norsk Tipping), to four license-based companies operating in the Italian market (Snaitech, Sisal, Gamenet and HBG gaming) to analyze how much surplus they contribute to their host societies and what kind of factors these amounts depend on. The results show that overall, the Nordic monopolistic operations appear more effective in terms of producing gambling surplus to society than the Italian license-based companies. This difference is analyzed in terms of game product portfolios, operating costs, and levels of normal profit. The role of operating costs appears to be the most important factor explaining the lower surplus generated by Italian companies. However, the bulk of these operating costs are directed to the redistribution network which creates employment. If these employment effects are considered, both licensing and monopolistic regimes appear similarly effective. We conclude by problematizing the use of financial effectiveness as a measure for good gambling policy. High surplus collected for societies is also related to high overall gambling volumes that go against public health objectives of reducing harms.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49610129","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
V. Marionneau, J. Järvinen-Tassopoulos, Tuulia Lerkkanen
This brief report presents results on how gamblers have experienced risks and change during the exceptional situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The study is based on online questionnaires collected by the University of Helsinki and the Finnish Association for Substance Use Prevention (N = 586). Results show that the reduced availability of gambling in the Finnish context has limited its total consumption. The risk of gambling-related harms has therefore become less pressing during the pandemic. Although gambling is a public health risk in addition to being a harmful activity for the individual, the policy measures during the pandemic have revealed that, at a societal level, the risk of infection with COVID-19 was perceived as being a more serious problem than was the risk of gambling harms.
{"title":"Gambling During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Experiences of Risks and Change Among Finnish Gamblers","authors":"V. Marionneau, J. Järvinen-Tassopoulos, Tuulia Lerkkanen","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.11","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.11","url":null,"abstract":"This brief report presents results on how gamblers have experienced risks and change during the exceptional situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The study is based on online questionnaires collected by the University of Helsinki and the Finnish Association for Substance Use Prevention (N = 586). Results show that the reduced availability of gambling in the Finnish context has limited its total consumption. The risk of gambling-related harms has therefore become less pressing during the pandemic. Although gambling is a public health risk in addition to being a harmful activity for the individual, the policy measures during the pandemic have revealed that, at a societal level, the risk of infection with COVID-19 was perceived as being a more serious problem than was the risk of gambling harms.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43516005","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Priscilla Brochu, I. Giroux, Julien Dufour, Daniel Fortin-Guichard, Etienne Gagnon, David Paquet, Isabelle Smith, S. Sévigny
The objective of this study was to compare erroneous beliefs of online Texas Hold’em poker players with different level of severity of problems, in situations that could cause negative emotions. Verbalizations of three groups of gamblers (low-risk, n=10; at-risk, n=10 and problem, n=10) while playing an online poker tournament in a laboratory setting. Participants were not aware that they played against research assistants and that all cards received were predetermined and the same for all participants. Beliefs related to the illusion of control were found in the three groups of gamblers. At-risk and problem gamblers’ perceptions denote a greater influence given to their ability on the game results, with even a denial of the part played by chance. Poker-specific beliefs, different from those usually held by game-of-chance gamblers, were also found. These results are discussed to provide ideas in how to adapt erroneous perceptions questionnaires for online poker players.
{"title":"Erroneous Beliefs Verbalized While Playing Online Poker","authors":"Priscilla Brochu, I. Giroux, Julien Dufour, Daniel Fortin-Guichard, Etienne Gagnon, David Paquet, Isabelle Smith, S. Sévigny","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.6","url":null,"abstract":"The objective of this study was to compare erroneous beliefs of online Texas Hold’em poker players with different level of severity of problems, in situations that could cause negative emotions. Verbalizations of three groups of gamblers (low-risk, n=10; at-risk, n=10 and problem, n=10) while playing an online poker tournament in a laboratory setting. Participants were not aware that they played against research assistants and that all cards received were predetermined and the same for all participants. Beliefs related to the illusion of control were found in the three groups of gamblers. At-risk and problem gamblers’ perceptions denote a greater influence given to their ability on the game results, with even a denial of the part played by chance. Poker-specific beliefs, different from those usually held by game-of-chance gamblers, were also found. These results are discussed to provide ideas in how to adapt erroneous perceptions questionnaires for online poker players.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43508782","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
F. Giannotta, C. Åslund, Charlotta Hellström, P. Larm
Adolescent gambling is becoming a public health problem. While comorbidities with other externalizing behaviours have been ascertained, few studies focus on adolescents with a multi-problem behaviour pattern, i.e., alcohol and tobacco use, in addition to antisocial behaviour, which includes problem gambling. The purpose of this study was to identify adolescents with multi-problem behaviours, i.e., alcohol abuse, daily smoking, antisocial behaviour, and problem gambling and to investigate the differences in relation to gender. Unlike most studies on this topic, we adopted a person-oriented approach to identify groups of adolescent boys and girls who reported multi-problem risk behaviours, i.e., alcohol abuse, daily smoking, antisocial behaviour, and problem gambling. Moreover, we explored to what extent these adolescents exhibited mental health problems, i.e., depressive, psychosomatic, and ADHD symptoms, as well as sleep problems. The sample consisted of 1,526 adolescents from two age cohorts, 15- to 16-year-olds (n = 711, 47%) and 17- to 18-year-olds (n = 815, 53%). Latent Variable Mixture Modeling (LVMM) revealed one group with low rates of all risk behaviours and three groups with multi-problem behaviours. Among the latter three groups, two reported problem gambling and had higher levels of mental health problems. These results suggest that gambling can be added to the constellation of risk behaviours in adolescence and might be more associated with mental health problems than other externalizing behaviours.
{"title":"Problem gambling, risk behaviours, and mental health in adolescence: A person oriented study","authors":"F. Giannotta, C. Åslund, Charlotta Hellström, P. Larm","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.4","url":null,"abstract":"Adolescent gambling is becoming a public health problem. While comorbidities with other externalizing behaviours have been ascertained, few studies focus on adolescents with a multi-problem behaviour pattern, i.e., alcohol and tobacco use, in addition to antisocial behaviour, which includes problem gambling. The purpose of this study was to identify adolescents with multi-problem behaviours, i.e., alcohol abuse, daily smoking, antisocial behaviour, and problem gambling and to investigate the differences in relation to gender. Unlike most studies on this topic, we adopted a person-oriented approach to identify groups of adolescent boys and girls who reported multi-problem risk behaviours, i.e., alcohol abuse, daily smoking, antisocial behaviour, and problem gambling. Moreover, we explored to what extent these adolescents exhibited mental health problems, i.e., depressive, psychosomatic, and ADHD symptoms, as well as sleep problems. The sample consisted of 1,526 adolescents from two age cohorts, 15- to 16-year-olds (n = 711, 47%) and 17- to 18-year-olds (n = 815, 53%). Latent Variable Mixture Modeling (LVMM) revealed one group with low rates of all risk behaviours and three groups with multi-problem behaviours. Among the latter three groups, two reported problem gambling and had higher levels of mental health problems. These results suggest that gambling can be added to the constellation of risk behaviours in adolescence and might be more associated with mental health problems than other externalizing behaviours.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45163853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Recently, some governments and other stakeholders in countries where online gambling has been legalized have implemented responsible gambling policies. From the theoretical and empirical evidence in this study, we show that these responsible gambling policies are insufficient to prevent the emergence of pathological gambling disorder in society, especially among adolescents. Since online gambling was legalized in Spain in June 2012, online gambling companies have been required by law to implement responsible gambling policies. The implemented policies largely consist of informing customers of the dangers of gambling and how to minimize harm by engaging in behaviour that prevents addiction. However, online gambling addiction has increased exponentially; at present, it is the second most common form of pathological gambling in Spain and the most common form among young children and adolescents (Chóliz, 2016). In our study involving 6,053 underage adolescents, the results showed that more than half of them had gambled and that the prevalence rate of pathological gambling was triple that of the general population. Our main conclusions are that online gambling especially affects male minors, some of whom have developed gambling disorders since the legalization (and broad promotion) of online gambling in Spain. Responsible gambling policies implemented by the conservative government of Spain (2011–2018) and by gambling companies were insufficient to prevent such disorders from becoming an epidemic among Spanish adolescents.
{"title":"“That’s No Country for ‘Young’ Men”: A Critical Perspective on Responsible Online Gambling Policies for Gambling Disorder Prevention in Spanish Minors","authors":"M. Chóliz, Marta Marcos","doi":"10.4309/jgi.2022.49.7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2022.49.7","url":null,"abstract":"Recently, some governments and other stakeholders in countries where online gambling has been legalized have implemented responsible gambling policies. From the theoretical and empirical evidence in this study, we show that these responsible gambling policies are insufficient to prevent the emergence of pathological gambling disorder in society, especially among adolescents. Since online gambling was legalized in Spain in June 2012, online gambling companies have been required by law to implement responsible gambling policies. The implemented policies largely consist of informing customers of the dangers of gambling and how to minimize harm by engaging in behaviour that prevents addiction. However, online gambling addiction has increased exponentially; at present, it is the second most common form of pathological gambling in Spain and the most common form among young children and adolescents (Chóliz, 2016). In our study involving 6,053 underage adolescents, the results showed that more than half of them had gambled and that the prevalence rate of pathological gambling was triple that of the general population. Our main conclusions are that online gambling especially affects male minors, some of whom have developed gambling disorders since the legalization (and broad promotion) of online gambling in Spain. Responsible gambling policies implemented by the conservative government of Spain (2011–2018) and by gambling companies were insufficient to prevent such disorders from becoming an epidemic among Spanish adolescents.","PeriodicalId":45414,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Gambling Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-01-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43978929","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}