Journal of Gambling Studies最新文献

The proliferation of betting shops in Spanish cities is causing a heated social debate in response to the undesirable impacts that businesses of this kind can have. As a result, associations and social movements have emerged to try to stem their expansion and, at the same time, regulations have been introduced to prevent the uncontrolled opening of this type of premises. The limitations set out in the legislation include minimum distances between betting shops and schools. In order to understand the spatial dimension of this phenomenon and to find out the extent to which these businesses comply with the regulations in force, in this paper, we study the distribution of betting shops in the city of Madrid and their proximity to each other and to schools. The results reveal certain areas of the city with a high density of betting shops and with schools with high exposure to these businesses. Likewise, results show the significant number of businesses that would have to close (81%; n = 416) if the current moratorium on betting shops that opened their doors before the current legislation came into force did not exist.

Motivation plays a dominant role in gambling progression. Most studies using motivational scales have revealed that certain motivations are associated with problem gambling. However, age differences were found to be negligible in gambling motivation. This study aimed to examine the role of motivation associated with age differences in problem gambling in Japan. A total of 160 participants over 20 years of age who had gambled within the past six months were randomly recruited from web monitors. In this study, the Japanese version of the modified Gambling Motivation Scale (J-MGMS) was used which comprises six systematic factors: intellectual challenge, excitement, socialization (coping and sociability), social recognition, monetary gain, and amotivation. The Japanese version of the South Oaks Gambling Screening (J-SOGS) was used to assess participants' gambling-related problems. Demographic data, such as gambling frequency, were solicited. Using linear regression analysis, amotivation in all participants, social recognition in early adults (under 30), and amotivation in late adults (30 or over) were associated with J-SOGS scores (adjusted R2 = 0.170, 0.290, 0.156). Among late adults, social recognition was nearly significant, although negative (p = 0.0503). 1) Self-determinant (autonomous) motivations such as excitement and socialization do not contribute to the progression of problem gambling. 2) Two non-self-determinant (non-autonomous) motivations, social recognition in early adults and amotivation in late adults, are predictors of problem gambling. 3) Social recognition is a dichotomic and paradoxical motivation in the progress of problem gambling according to age.

The present study investigated the extent to which financial risk-taking (FRT) perspectives and religiosity influenced an individual's performance on financial decision-making tasks under risk and/or uncertainty. It further investigated the potential to measure this interaction using electro-encephalogram (EEG) assessments through reward-related event-related potentials (P3 and FRN). EEG data were collected from 37 participants undergoing four decision-making tasks comprising the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), Iowa Gambling Test (IGT), Mixed-Gamble Loss-Aversion Task (MGLAT), and MGLA-Success Task (MGLAST). The present study found that BART performance may be affected by an interaction of FRT perspectives and religiosity. The physiological effects of task feedback were also distinguished between religious and non-religious individuals objectively with EEG data. Overall, while religiosity and FRT may not significantly influence IGT and MGLA performance, and interact with BART in a complex way, physiological reaction towards feedback after BART performance appears to be strongly affected by religiosity and FRT perspectives.

Responsible gambling (RG) refers to a set of protective strategies aiming at containing the negative consequences associated with gambling. To improve the effectiveness of RG, it is essential to understand factors influencing gamblers' adherence to RG. Past literatures on addictive behaviors have demonstrated that one's self-efficacy and self-esteem are associated with the adherence to protective behaviors of the specific addictive behaviors. The present study aims to test whether gamblers' self-esteem and RG self-efficacy can be applied to explain their adherence to protective gambling behaviors. Two hundred and thirty-six past-year gamblers were randomly selected to take part in a phone survey. Path analysis showed that both gamblers' RG self-efficacy and self-esteem were positively associated with gamblers' RG behaviors, while RG behaviors were negatively linked to the problem gambling tendency. The findings provided insight into potential promotion and intervention strategies based on self-esteem and self-efficacy and those strategies may be adopted in the primary prevention of gambling disorder.

Little is known about the prevalence of problem gambling among sexual minority individuals. The present study utilized an epidemiological sample, including individuals identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, and pansexual, to explore gambling behavior and problems and associated mental health and comorbid conditions that may contribute to elevated risk. Bivariate comparisons found that sexual minority individuals had higher rates of problem gambling, alcohol and substance use problems, anxiety, depression, and a wide range of problem behaviors (e.g., binge eating, prostitution, excessive video gaming) than heterosexuals. In a logistic regression, age moderated the relationship between sexual minority status and problem gambling, such that the risk for high-risk problem gambling increased with age for sexual minority individuals while it decreased for heterosexuals. Additionally, a logistic regression of sexual minority individuals who gamble found anxiety (OR = 3.80, 95% CI = 1.03, 13.97) and drug problems (OR = 8.57, 95% CI = 1.79, 41.05) predicted high-risk problem gambling. Findings suggest that prevention and screening protocols are needed in systems accessed by sexual minority individuals, particularly those middle age and older, as well as in settings where anxiety and substance use disorders are treated.

How might frequent gamblers convince themselves to keep playing despite persistent losses or after a win that should be savored? The purpose of this research is to examine the unexplored question of how frequent gamblers' use counterfactual thinking to motivate their desire to continue gambling. Using a sample of n = 69 high and n = 69 low frequency gamblers in a field setting, we found that infrequent gamblers tended to consider how the perceived outcome of losing "could have been better" (i.e., upward counterfactual thinking), and how a winning outcome "could have been worse" (i.e., downward counterfactual thinking). This pattern of counterfactual thinking is considered typical in many settings and may, in a gambling context, support a potentially more responsible approach by helping infrequent gamblers to learn from past mistakes to avoid significant future losses and to savor wins to protect returns gained. Alternatively, we found that frequent gamblers were more likely to generate 'dual counterfactuals' which include both upward and downward counterfactuals in response to losses and wins. We argue that this dual pattern of counterfactual thinking may allow frequent gamblers to more easily justify their desire to continue gambling. Findings suggest that challenging gamblers counterfactual thinking patterns could assist clinicians in moderating the potential for high-risk behaviors.

Esports gambling has steadily grown in popularity alongside esports itself. While research has been increasing in the field of esports-related gambling, no study has yet reviewed the relevant literature on esports gambling. The present study aimed to comprehensively review all empirical research conducted in the wider field of esports gambling. A systematic review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines was undertaken using PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. Only empirical studies were included and were also assessed for potential biases using the ROBUST guidelines. A total of 30 studies from eight countries were included in the review. Esports gamblers were found more likely to be young males, likely to score high on problematic gambling scales, and likely to belong to households speaking a non-English language at home in English speaking countries. Esports gamblers are a unique type of gambling population, with rare characteristics and behaviors compared to other types of gamblers. Given the limited number of studies, there is a need for further research in this field to understand these populations, as well as the need for longitudinal research.

In recent years a number of studies have used objective gambling data from online gambling operators to study gambling behavior. A few of these studies have compared gamblers' actual gambling behavior (using account-based tracking data) with their subjective gambling behavior (using responses from survey data). The present study extended previous studies by comparing self-reported money deposited with the actual amount of money deposited. The authors were given access to an anonymized secondary dataset of 1,516 online gamblers from a European online gambling operator. After removing those who had not deposited any money in the previous 30 days, the final sample size for analysis was 639 online gamblers. The results indicated that gamblers were able to estimate fairly accurately how much money they had deposited in the past 30 days. However, the higher the amount of money deposited, the more likely gamblers underestimated the actual amount of money deposited. With respect to age and gender, there were no significant differences between male and female gamblers in their estimation biases. However, a significant age difference was found between those who overestimated and underestimated their deposits, with younger gamblers tending to overestimate their deposits. Providing feedback as to whether the gamblers overestimated or underestimated their deposits did not lead to any additional significant changes in the amount of money deposited when considering the overall reduction in deposits after self-assessment. The implications of the findings are discussed.

The rise of online gambling has drawn attention towards offshore gambling. Currently there is lack of evidence on reasons and motivations to gamble on offshore gambling sites. This study investigated the general gambling motives of onshore and offshore gamblers, and the reasons to gamble on offshore gambling sites. The study used binary logistic regression model to analyze the data from Finnish Gambling 2019 population survey including adult past-year online gamblers (n = 1,422). The validated measure for problem gambling severity (PGSI, Problem Gambling Severity Index) was used. Furthermore, data-driven qualitative analysis was used to form categories for the reasons to gamble on offshore gambling sites. Offshore gambling was more common among men and younger age groups than among women or older age groups. Offshore gamblers gambled less often for money or worthy causes than onshore gamblers. Furthermore, offshore gamblers had more different types of motives to gamble, they gambled more frequently and had higher problem gambling severity scores (PGSI) than onshore gamblers. Finally, the most common reasons to gamble offshore were: (1) larger game supply and game features, (2) benefits, bonuses, and the usability of the website, and (3) inner motivation. Offshore gambling is characterized with intensity and diversity of gambling behavior and motives, and it poses a risk especially for young men.

Pachinko and pachislot are popular types of gambling activities in Japan. Prior studies in Japan have reported a concerning prevalence of problem gambling among adult players. While these studies have identified various gambling-related harms, Japanese research on harm-minimization strategies is scarce. Therefore, the present study aimed to compare differences of gambling-related harms among normal-, half-, and quarter-pachi players to the usefulness of low-investment pachinko and pachislot as a harm-reduction strategy. We considered gamblers who played games that cost the typical amount of money to be "normal-pachi players." Those who played low-investment games were categorized as "half-pachi players" and "quarter-pachi players," reflecting those who played games at half or one quarter the cost of a typical machine, respectively. To assess the harm-reduction effect, a one-way ANCOVA was conducted to compare the impact of the groups (normal-pachi players [n = 101], half-pachi players [n = 104], and quarter-pachi players [n = 100]) on dependent variables, namely the number of days players had gambled during the prior month; total time and amount of money spent on gambling; debts caused by gambling; gambling severity; cognitive distortion; depressive symptoms; and problems in work, family, and social life. We demonstrated that the amount of money spent by quarter-pachi players on gambling during the past month was lower than that of normal-pachi players. However, we did not find significant differences with respect to any other gambling-related harms among normal-, half-, and quarter-pachi players. Low-investment pachinko and pachislot players spends less the amount of money spent on gambling. Low-investment pachinko and pachislot would thus partly act as a harm-minimization strategy. Moreover, the results of the present study indicate that the problems at work affect various outcomes for gamblers. Given that 90% of the participants in this study were employed, the results of this study may have important implications for employed gamblers.