Gambling is popular among people of any age, starting from children and ending with elderly people. But, what in particular does children and teenage gamble bring and what are the risks of becoming addicted?The Connecticut Clearinghouse, Wheeler Clinic, Inc. funded by Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) reported that “Kids and teenagers have always gambled, whether at marbles or flipping baseball cards. Some teens wager on sports, lotteries, jai alai matches, horse and dog races, card playing, as well as at bingo, casinos and video gaming machines. Opportunities to gamble are everywhere, and access is increasing. Some students gamble regularly, while as many a 85 percent have tried their hand at some form of gambling.”
Even though official it is allowed to gamble only when you become of age, many children put a start to it at their early years, which is around 10-15. Gambling at this age comes in more innocent forms, such as card games with peers or scratchy cards and lotteries on LottoAsian. Some stay at this stage and some pass on to something more serious, like sports betting websites, online casinos and so on. Online gambling is pretty easy to access and such websites are being advertised on the majority of online services, which awakens the interest in teenagers.
Gipta and Derevnsky of Canada claim that today’s adolescents are the first to live their entire lives in a society of legalized gambling. Gambling opportunities are available at local corner stores, restaurants and bars. Lotteries, pulltabs, sports betting and casinos have become part of everyday life for many people. Although it remains illegal for minors to gamble on most government-regulated activities, the willingness of gambling operators to turn a blind eye to juvenile gambling, given the large revenues generated, results in children and adolescents becoming very much a part of the industry.
Why gambling seems like fun to children and teenagers
First of all, gambling industry is so wide-spread nowadays that many youngsters perceive it as something usual and normal to do. What’s more, such type of activity involves social interaction by messaging and sharing personal gambling experiences, which makes it even more interesting for teens.
It also brings some feeling of adrenalin and sensation along with high expectations of winning, which stimulates the brain in a way that’s hard to achieve by simple day-to-day activities.
Spotting teenage gambling problems
If you have a hard time noticing whether your child has any type of gambling problems, pay attention to these things:
- Groundlessly increasing amount of money that your child possesses / its shortage
- Changes in behavior such as sleeping problems, mood swings and easy irritability
- Unwillingness to be socially active
- Keeping their gambling activity a secret
- Visiting various online casinos such as Gclub Grand (you can check their browser history for that)
Preventing teenage gambling
It’s important to find a reason for such addiction. For teenagers, gambling may seem as an accessible distraction from reality, where the problems they don’t want to cope with, exist. Pay attention to what is going on in your child’s life, whether they have friends or it’s hard for them to communicate with others, whether they have any mental problems, which worry them and, last but not least, whether they have troubles at school.
Make sure that your child knows how gambling works, educate them about the algorithms of online gambling and teach them that it’s impossible to always be the winner in these games.
Risk factors for developing gambling problems
Some factors, which you may also notice in your child, give out an addictive personality:
- Any types of addiction, like smoking, drinking or taking drugs
- An impulsive personality, who is always looking for new activities to bring them the feeling of sensation
- Ignoring obvious problems and unwillingness to solve them (they find it easier to distract themselves than to face reality)
- Proneness to frequent depression and anxiety
- Having an example to follow in front of them, it may be a gambling-addicted parent or a relative with any type of addiction.
Not surprisingly, most 9–14-year-olds gamble in their homes with their families. Although youth seem to be aware that gambling is primarily driven by luck, they also believe they can exert meaningful amounts of skill while gambling, endorsing the “illusion of control.” The most reported reason was for the enjoyment and excitement it provides.
Adolescent pathological and social gamblers have basic differences, stemming from whether the behavior is part of the gambler’s integrated activity or rather an all-consuming obsession. For instance, pathological gamblers are more likely to have a parent who gambles excessively, and gambling makes the pathological gambler feel more important than his or her non-pathological peers. Also, pathological gamblers report borrowing money to finance their gambling habits and more engagement in illegal acts such as stealing. Pathological gamblers express a preoccupation with the “when and how” of the next gambling event.
Treatment requires a psychiatric evaluation ruling out biochemical addictions, impulse control disorders, bi-polar disorder, hypomanic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and anti-social personality disorder. There may be need for psychotropic medications such as SSRIs or mood stabilizers.
A cognitive-behavioral counseling strategy focusing on reality therapy is highly recommended along with required abstinence of mood-altering drugs, especially if biochemical addictions are present and attendance at self-help support groups is for a lasting recovery. The teens must be taught the following “Healthy Decision Making Process” and will need to reframe their “illusion of control” beliefs.
