Gambling is a popular pastime that involves risking money or something of value. It includes betting on sporting events, buying lottery tickets or scratchcards and playing games of chance. It can be enjoyable but it is important to recognize the potential risks and how gambling can affect your life.
Most people have a positive experience with gambling and do not develop an addiction. But, for some people, gambling becomes problematic and can cause problems with family, friends, work and even their mental health. This is known as problem gambling or pathological gambling. People with a pathological gambling disorder are at higher risk of suicide than those who do not have a problem.
The main reason people gamble is for the chance to win. Winning a large sum of money can be very exciting and rewarding. Gambling is also often socially acceptable and is considered an appropriate activity in many societies. For this reason, some people have difficulty recognizing the signs of a gambling problem.
Those who have a gambling problem can suffer from physical and mental health problems, loss of jobs and homes, and relationships can break down. They may become dependent on drugs and alcohol, which can further erode their self-esteem. They can also find it difficult to think clearly, which may make it harder to do their daily tasks.
It is possible to develop a gambling disorder at any age, but it is more common among men. It can be due to genetic predisposition or differences in brain regions that regulate rewards, impulsive behaviour and decision-making. The cultural attitudes towards gambling can also influence a person’s ability to recognize the signs of a gambling disorder and seek help when needed.
There are many reasons why someone might gamble, including coping with boredom or stress, for financial benefits or to relieve anxiety. However, the chances of winning are relatively small and most people will lose more than they win.
A study by EIGHT (a collaboration between MNP and the Donaghue Women’s Health Investigator Program at Yale) showed that problem gamblers have a lower quality of life than those who do not gamble. The EIGHT quality of life scale measures six domains: emotional, social, spiritual, occupational and economic. The research found that gamblers had significantly lower scores on the emotional and social dimensions than non-gamblers.
Historically, researchers have ignored the social impacts of gambling and focused solely on its economic costs and benefits. However, there are many social and psychological effects of gambling that do not aggregate to societal real wealth, and are therefore not easily quantifiable. These costs have been termed ‘invisible individual and external costs’. To identify these costs, we used the MEDLINE database (1966–present) and searched for articles with the textword ‘gambling’. The included studies were assessed for their quality using the AGREE II instrument. The results show that the invisible individual and external costs of gambling are considerable. They can be categorized into personal level costs that are invisible and hidden, community/societal level externalities, costs associated with problem gambling, and long-term cost.