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Youth Problem Gambling
Although problem
gambling has been primarily thought of as an adult behavior, recent
research has suggested that it remains a very popular activity amongst
both children and adolescents. An alarmingly high percentage of children
and adolescents worldwide have been found to engage in gambling
activities.
Studies conducted over
the past decade suggest that gambling activities remain particularly
attractive to today's youth and that its popularity is on the rise
amongst both children and adolescents. Prevalence studies conducted in
the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Europe, and in Australia all
confirm the rising prevalence rates of youth involvement in both legal
and illegal forms of gambling. While approximately 80% of High School
students report having gambled for money during the past year, 4-8% of
adolescents presently have a serious gambling problem with another
10-14% of adolescents at-risk for developing a serious gambling problem
(Jacobs, 2000; National Research Council, 1999; Shaffer & Hall, 1996).
Yet, for most parents and teens, gambling is viewed as an innocuous
behavior with few negative consequences. Our Center at McGill University
is actively involved in research, treatment, prevention, training,
public health and social policy issues.
Our
current state of knowledge
Reasons
for gambling
Negative consequences associated with adolescent problem gambling
When do
youth begin gambling? |
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Our
current state of knowledge Top
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For the past
eleven years we have been actively engaged in a program of
research designed to help identify the risk and protective
factors associated with gambling problems among youth, to
examine the antecedents of the problem, and to identify
effective strategies for the prevention and treatment of youth
with serious gambling problems.
Despite some
conflicting findings, there appears to be an overall consensus
that:
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Gambling is
more popular amongst males than females |
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Pathological gamblers are greater risk takers |
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Adolescent
prevalence rates of problem gamblers are 2-4 times that of
adults |
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Adolescents
with problem/pathological gambling behaviors have lower self
esteem, higher rates of depression, dissociate more
frequently when gambling, and are at increased risk for the
development of an addiction or multiple addictions |
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Research on
personality traits reveals adolescent pathological gamblers
are more excitable, extroverted, anxious, tend to have
difficulty conforming to societal norms, and experience
difficulties with self discipline |
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Adolescents
with serious gambling problems are at heightened risk for
suicide ideation and suicide attempts |
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Quality
friendships and relationships are often lost and replaced by
gambling associates |
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Adolescents
with gambling problems have poor general coping skills |
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Adolescent
problem gamblers report beginning gambling at earlier ages
(approximately 10), with many reporting an early big win |
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Adolescents
experience a rapid movement from social gambling to problem
gambling |
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They report
more daily hassles and major traumatic life events |
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They often
have parents, relatives or friends with similar problems |
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They have
been found to be more self blaming, and guilt prone, and
experience other emotional problems |
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Problem and
pathological gambling in adolescence has been shown to
result in increased delinquency and crime, the disruption of
familial relationships, and decreased academic performance
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Reasons for gambling
Top
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Contrary to
public opinion, our research and clinical work suggests that
money is not the predominant issue as to why adolescents
excessively engage in these behaviors. Rather, it appears as
though money is used as a vehicle which enables individuals to
continue playing. Through play, either with video poker
machines, sports betting, cards, or other forms of gambling,
adolescents exhibit a number of dissociate behaviors; escaping
into another world, often with altered egos. When playing,
adolescents with serious gambling problems report that nothing
else matters and that all their problems disappear. For an
adolescent with a gambling problem, a good day is walking into a
gaming room with $20, playing all day, and losing all the money.
A bad day is when the $20 only lasts 10 minutes. The three
predominant reasons all adolescents report gambling is for the
excitement it brings, for enjoyment and to win money. Other
adolescents engage in this behavior for peer pressure, to
relieve boredom and to mask their depression. |
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Negative consequences
associated with adolescent problem gambling
Top
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Problematic
gambling among adolescents has been shown to result in increased
delinquency and crime, and the disruption of family and peer
relationships. Problem gambling can also negatively affect
overall school performance (possible drop out) and work
activities. While these youth present themselves differently
from adults, they nevertheless have similar characteristics.
These adolescents have a preoccupation with gambling,
sacrificing school, work, and parents and peer relationships in
order to maintain this behavior. |
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When do youth begin
gambling?
Top
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Gambling has
become a normalized part of many cultures. It is not unusual for
parents to purchase lottery tickets for their children at an
early age or to take them to play Bingo. Retrospective studies
have indicated that adult problem gamblers report the onset of
their gambling to have begun quite early, often beginning
between the ages of 10-19. A large scale study of adolescents in
Alberta found that most problem gamblers began gambling, on
average, at age 10 with similar results being found in several
of our studies of high school students and young adults in
Canada, and other studies conducted throughout the world. |
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Information Provided By:
Youth Gambling International
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