Gambling Expansion: Addiction In Contemporary Society

Up to 90% of adults in Australia have gambled at some point in their life.more statistics The promises made, were lies, and the same errors relapsed over and over again.We will be waiting when you can tell yourself there’s so much more to life than just gambling.We will be waiting for you gamblers to take a step back and think about the love ones whom you are destroying, but when will this happen? and will it not re- occur?. We now so well the difficulties in limiting money and/or time spent on gambling, which leads to adverse consequences for the gambler, their family or friends and for the community. The latest research suggests that about one per cent of the population has a gambling problem. These ranges from increasing levels of debt,

“Current estimates suggest that three percent of the adult population will experience a serious problem with gambling that will result in significant debt, family disruption, job losses, criminal activity or suicide. Pathological gambling affects the gamblers, their families, their employers and the community. As the gamblers go through the phases of their addiction, they spend less

Social Although gambling industry can bring more employment opportunities and offer diversified leisure activities for the public, it could also lead harms. ‘Problem Gambling’ is the main disadvantage that gambling produced, it may result in an increasing number of personal bankruptcy, suicide, crime and child welfare may be ignored and so on (Williams, Rehm & Stevens, 2011). Hence, the Australian Gaming Council formulated the Responsible Gaming regulation to conduct the gambling industry in Australia and reduce the existing and potential harms.

There are many reasons to link financial problems and crime to the large revenues of gambling. Financial losses are one of the extreme threats and costs to the gambler. This is because

There is no specific treatment option that is more beneficial. However, there are a variety of treatment options available for gambling addiction such as Gambler’s Anonymous, which is a support group and psychotherapy that involves cognitive behavioral therapy. Family therapy or group meetings with professional counselors can assist family members. In addition, there is the National Problem Gambling Helpline Network and Gamblers Anonymous that help love ones with their gambling problems (www.casino.org). The medication that is used to treat compulsive gambling is antidepressants and mood stabilizers (www.mayoclinic).

There are many different forms of gambling. Whether one is betting on a lottery ticket, a horse race, a sports game, or slot machines, to name a few, they are spending money with unfavourable odds of winning that money back. Many people cannot control when they walk away from gambling, as they will continue to bet in an attempt to win back the lost money. The issue is - for the most part - that the losses continue to increase. In Victoria, in the fiscal year of 2000-01, gamblers lost a total of $14.38 billion, including $2.36 billion on the leading cause of losses, poker machines (11). This can result in problem gambling. Based on different surveys in Canada, it is estimated that approximately 1 in 20 Canadians either have a gambling problem, or are at serious risk of obtaining one. 1 in 20 Canadians adds up to 760,800 problem gamblers (12). In the US, an estimated 3 million people are problem gamblers, and another 15 million are at risk of developing gambling problems (13). Problem gambling would not be as severe of an issue if it only harmed the gambler themselves, as it is their choice to gamble and displays a only a lack of self control. The issue is that people are indirectly affected by problem gambling. It can result in problems with personal relationships, neglect of ones family, bankruptcy, and stress related disorders such as depression, or insomnia (14). Problem gambling also has a positive correlation with crime. This means that the more problem gamblers there are, the more crimes are being committed. Statistics from a published survey show that only 3.3% of responsible, low frequency gamblers have been convicted of committing a crime, while a staggering 28.3% of problem gamblers have been convicted at least once (15). These numbers show that problem gamblers do not only harm themselves, but the consequences have a continuous ripple effect,

Middleton and Latif write about the government’s plans to establish casinos in the United Kingdom and that more thought should be put in to the potential health effects it may cause. Both define problem gambling and the effects on one’s physical, mental and social well-being.

Data also indicates high levels of suicidality, with 25% of pathological gamblers in England reporting a suicide attempt in their lifetime, and 20% describing past-year ideation [4]. Adverse consequences extend beyond the individual, and include impacts on families through debt, relationship dysfunction [9] and domestic violence (DV). A recent evidence synthesis [10] suggests 37% of pathological gamblers report DV perpetration (38% report victimisation), and rates of gambling disorders in perpetrator samples that are also high (11%). In the UK, gambling problems predict overuse of NHS services including primary care (2-fold increase relative to no problems), hospital inpatient care (5-fold increase), and psychological counselling (8-fold increase) [4]. Notwithstanding these public health impacts, and overrepresentation in health care services, there is limited awareness of gambling problems and low levels of identification in these contexts. In the context of increased gambling participation and public health consequences [11], [12], there is strong need for initiatives to minimise excessive gambling and related harms. These initiatives include provision of psychological treatments with demonstrated efficacy

Gambling is all around the United States, and it can be a dangerous game for families. Many casino’s find gambling as a profit for their Company, since many people from around the United States will come to their casino and try to win it big with their own money. Gambling has been around for many years and a statement made by Worldcasinodirectory.com, stated “To begin with, gambling did not originate in the US- it came to this country with immigrants from Europe, Asia- especially China, and other parts of the world.” The United States was just another victim of an ongoing addiction. By, understanding how gambling reached the borders of The United States, how a notorious gang leader started the empire of gambling, and how an addiction pushes people to their limits, can help understand how gambling has become such a demanding element in a society.

“The state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene conducted a study before the first Maryland casino opened in 2010, and published it in 2011. They found that nearly 90 percent of Marylanders had gambled, and that 3.4 percent were either pathological gamblers or problem gamblers.” (Massimo) There has been numerous stories of addicted gamblers in debt, gamblers that have lost family and friends from their addictions. There was a man $400,000 in debt, his wife threw him out of the house and told him he could not see his kids again unless he gave up gambling. Also, another gambler went on a 48 hour binge without sleeping and barely eating. A woman faced a jail term for stealing $135,000 to feed her gambling

The generation in 21 century live in an era in which gambling is legalized for those adolescents whom reach the legal age of majority. Their daily life revolves around a society where majority of adolescents consider gambling as entertainment recreational activity. According to Hardoon and Derevensky (2002), gambling became easily accessible and socially acceptable that it has become a public and a family event such as 50/50 draws or bingo at school or Christmas lottery tickets within a family event. To support this statement, researchers provided a study in which reports 50.1% of Canadian adolescents receive lottery draw tickets from their parents as a present (Hardoon & Derevensky, 2002). Those who have been involved in underage gambling, their gambling behaviour will likely to prolong as an adult since they can now legally get an access to bigger gambling at casinos and will have more options and face opportunities. Gambling being socially accepted and thought of daily entertainment brings strong impact on adolescent influencing different aspects of their lives. An evidence suggests that Canadian youth under the age of 18 were able to purchase lottery tickets 42% of the time and were able to access casino gambling in Canada (Adlaf,

     Gambling addiction is an issue found in numerous areas where gambling is legal. People who are addicted to gambling, also know as problem gamblers, face many health risks including depression, suicidal thoughts, loss of sleep, loss of appetite, migraine and anxiety in addition to marriage breakdown, problems at work and bankruptcy (9). About 2 percent of adults are thought to be problem gamblers (1). In today’s society this costly addiction is not often considered to be a common problem among those who gamble. Only a small amount of states in the U.S. give enough attention toward this rising problem of people that are sometimes even willing to commit crimes just to aid their addiction. In the past our

Research suggests that for every problem gambler there are 10 to 17 people around him that will be negatively affected.[iv] Excessive spending on gambling can have serious consequences for the gambler's family. For the most part, bills and necessary expenses are not paid and the burden will fall onto the spouse or children.[v] There can also be a negative impact on the gamblers' work environment. If the gambler is not focused or absent from work, he may be fired which could add to his financial difficulty that started with his gambling habit. Crime is sometimes used to support gambling habits after bank accounts are exhausted.

“Gambling” could be defined as, “to stake or risk money, or anything of value, on the outcome of something involving chance.”(dictionary.com) Gambling has long been a part of society, dating back to 2300 B.C when the Chinese invented a gambling game called tiles. When done in moderation, gambling could be seen as fun and entertaining to one. However, some people can’t just have fun, they spend their entire net worth and ruin their lives because of it. The average person may not understand how gambling addiction comes about. After all, many people in society gamble in one form or another whether it’s pools with friends, home poker games, or an annual trip to the local casino. In addition, it can be done once for most people, without getting addicted, similarly to drug addictions. “Behavioral, cognitive, and neurobiological profiles of individuals with pathological gambling disorder resemble those of individuals with substance use disorders, especially stimulate

In modern society, technological advancements have caused casino gambling to shift to online, “on-the-go”, gambling. Online gambling can be effortlessly accessible to anyone over the legal age as required by various jurisdictions. Margee Hume and Gillian Mort argue that youth misperceive the definition of “gambling”, as they believe gambling is a hobby from which one can receive rewards such as money (119). As a result, those gambling for rewards, do not generally acknowledge the possible negative outcomes associated with gambling. Hume and Mort claim that the majority of the youth define gambling “as a game, as fun, and as a family activity”, others considered gambling to be “games of skill”, and lastly, a small proportion described it to be “immoral… [and]…risky” (119). Online gambling has a negative impact on youth who resort to gambling since there is potential for addiction, financial loss, and a damaged social life.