Online gambling addiction is already a reality. Since the Gambling Regulation Act came into force in 2011, the number of online players has skyrocketed. As a result, the increase in people with gambling problems is beginning to be alarming.
It was not until 1977 that gambling was legalized in Spain. Since then, different and attractive forms of gambling and betting have appeared: slot machines, bingo, casinos, pools, coupons, etc. The most recent is online betting, and it is gaining so much strength that there are already a large number of people who have been ruined thanks to it.
The DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) defines a pathological gambler as an individual characterized by “a chronic and progressive inability to resist impulses to engage in games of chance or betting, and this activity puts family, personal, and vocational goals at risk.” Today, health professionals consider pathological gambling to be an addictive behavior.
In this article, we will focus on online gambling addiction. The term online gambling refers to all forms of gambling that involve betting money on some kind of chance event and that is done through the Internet, either from a computer, mobile phone, or any other device with access to the Internet.
How did online gambling addiction start?
Online gambling has grown enormously over the last 10 years and currently accounts for around 8% of the global gambling market. In Spain, the number of online gambling operators has multiplied in just a few years: poker, bingo, casino games, betting, and contests. In our country, the sector is expected to grow by around 10% in the coming years.
But every coin has two sides. With the increase in the number of players, the number of people with gambling addiction problems has also increased alarmingly. As time goes by, it becomes clear that the worst predictions of experts, who pointed out that the legalization of online gambling would increase the rates of pathological gambling, are coming true in many parts of the world.
Despite the short time that has passed since the Gambling Regulation Act came into force in our country, there are already numerous associations and entities that are warning of the large increase in cases of online gambling addiction.
The change in the game mode has also brought with it a change in the profile of the pathological gambler. A while ago, the predominant profile was a man between 30 and 40 years old, whose objective was to win money or recover what he had lost. However, nowadays, it is young people between 15 and 35 years old, many of them students or university graduates, who play for more and more hours.
What variables are affecting online gambling addiction?
In general, it has been shown that online gaming is more addictive than the same type of game in its physical form. This is mainly due to both structural variables (how the games themselves work) and environmental variables (the conditions in which they are presented).
As for structural variables, some of the most important are:
- The immediacy of reward: what is relevant is the speed with which one knows whether one has won a prize or not. The bet is quickly followed by the result, which is one of the main variables affecting the repetition of the behavior.
- Speed of betting: speed not only occurs in obtaining the prize but the next bet can be placed immediately.
- High probability of winning: the percentage of prizes in online games is generally higher than in the physical version. However, it is always lower than the amount collected (very important).
- Expert bias: Many online games promote the impression that there are strategies that allow you to win and that there is less chance than there is. Expert bias encourages risk-taking in the face of a misguided perception of superiority or an illusory sense of control.
In addition to the characteristics of the game itself, the conditions in which it is played can favor the development of inappropriate playing patterns. Some of the most relevant environmental variables are the following:
- Privacy: Internet gaming allows for isolated, uncontrolled, and supposedly anonymous gaming.
- Convenience: Playing in a pleasant and safe environment. Mobile devices allow players to bet wherever, whenever, and under the conditions they want.
- Accessibility: There is a huge selection of games and the way to play is simple and quite intuitive.
How can we help in the field of online gambling addiction?
It is quite common for those affected by this type of addictive behavior not to recognize their problem or ask for help until they are drowning in debt. However, it has been proven that psychological treatment works. Once these patients put themselves in the hands of a mental health professional, it is normal for more than 50% of them to overcome their problems.
The treatment that has obtained the best results has been cognitive-behavioral, whether combined with pharmacological treatment or not.