Gambling Self-Control Strategies: A Qualitative Analysis

Addicta, 2025

This study investigates the phenomenon of online gambling among university students, focusing on its underlying factors and the negative consequences it entails. At a Turkish government university, a total of 40 students have confessed to engaging in online gambling. The inquiry utilized the methodology of phenomenology. The results were derived from a process of content analysis. The analysis involved tabulating the codes, sub-themes, and themes according to the research sub-problems. The interpretation was based on direct quotes. The participants devoted an average of 1–2 hours each day to participating in online gambling platforms at least once a week, ranked by frequency. Typically, participants utilize smartphones to access appropriate platforms and show a preference for slot machines and iddaa/match betting. Research indicates that individuals who engage in both legal and criminal online gambling sites are driven by social motivations, the thrill of the activity, and the aspiration to generate income. Ultimately, the research concluded that engaging in online gambling leads to bodily ailments, the compulsion to conceal it from loved ones, feelings of sorrow or discontentment due to financial losses, and detrimental impacts on social relationships.

1998

There is more than one sense in which people believe they control their gambling. First there is the adaptive sense of having control over whether and how much to gamble. Other less adaptive strategies include holding superstitious beliefs that winning can be influenced by thoughts or actions such as 'thinking positively'. Another sense in which gamblers try to take control is through the fantasy that they will get their lives back in order through a 'big win'. The aim of this study was to assess the association between beliefs about control and gambling behaviour among young people aged 15 to 25 years (N= 1017). Results indicated that irrational control beliefs were strongly associated with problem gambling. Young problem gamblers were more likely to believe they needed money and that gambling would provide it. In addition, young problem gamblers had more faith in gambling techniques of various kinds, and in their ability to manipulate chance, and 'beat the system'.

Research indicates that gamblers frequently set self-imposed limits on how much time and money they wish to gamble in a given gambling session, yet consistently gamble more than initially intended. The emotional and arousing impact of gambling, as well as dissociative states gamblers experience whilst gambling, may contribute to this behavioural shift which reflects a failure in self-control. Essential then, is the need for harm minimisation strategies aimed at allowing a gambler to stay in control of their decisions and behaviour during gambling, whilst concurrently limiting the negative impact this may have on the gambling experience for those who frequently stay in control. The following article evaluates the use of limit setting and pre-commitment, the use of ‘cooling off’ periods, and restricting access to additional funds as harm minimisation strategies, in terms of their efficacy in facilitating self-control in problem and non-problem gambling populations. As with any potenti...

Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 2009

This research examined similarities and differences between gambling activities, with a particular focus on differences in gambling frequency and rates of problem gambling. The data were from populationbased surveys conducted in Canada between 2001 and 2005. Adult respondents completed various versions of the Canadian Problem Gambling Index (CPGI), including the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI). A factor analysis of the frequency with which different gambling activities were played documented the existence of two clear underlying factors. One factor was comprised of Internet gambling and betting on sports and horse races, and the other factor was comprised of lotteries, raffles, slots/Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs), and bingo. Factor one respondents were largely men; factor two respondents were more likely to be women and scored significantly lower on a measure of problem gambling. Additional analyses indicated that (1) frequency of play was significantly and positively related to problem gambling scores for all activities except raffles, (2) the relationship between problem gambling scores and frequency of play was particularly pronounced for slots/VLTs, (3) problem gambling scores were associated with playing a larger number of games, and (4) Internet and sports gambling had the highest conversion rates (proportion who have tried an activity who frequently play that activity).

PLOS ONE

Prior studies have identified self-regulatory strategies that are infrequently used by problemgamblers, but which might be protective if used. However, guidelines with evidence-based safe gambling practices (SGPs) that prevent gambling-related harm are lacking. This study aimed to: 1) identify a parsimonious set of evidence-based SGPs that best predict nonharmful gambling amongst gamblers who are otherwise most susceptible to experiencing gambling harm; 2) examine how widely are they used; and 3) assess whether their use differs by gambler characteristics. A sample of 1,174 regular gamblers in Alberta Canada completed an online survey measuring uptake of 43 potential SGPs, gambling harms and numerous risk factors for harmful gambling. Elastic net regression identified a sub-sample of 577 gamblers most susceptible to gambling harm and therefore most likely to benefit from the uptake of SGPs. A second elastic net predicted gambling harm scores in the sub-sample, using the SGPs as candidate predictors. Nine SGPs best predicted non-harmful gambling amongst this sub-sample. The behaviour most strongly associated with increased harm was using credit to gamble. The behaviour most strongly associated with reduced harm was 'If I'm not having fun gambling, I stop'. These SGPs form the basis of evidencebased safe gambling guidelines which can be: 1) promoted to consumers, 2) form the basis of self-assessment tests, 3) used to measure safe gambling at a population level, and 4) inform supportive changes to policy and practice. The guidelines advise gamblers to: stop if they are not having fun, keep a household budget, keep a dedicated gambling budget, have a fixed amount they can spend, engage in other leisure activities, avoid gambling when upset or depressed, not use credit for gambling, avoid gambling to make money, and not think that strategies can help you win. These guidelines are a promising initiative to help reduce gambling-related harm.

Canadian Journal of Public Health, 2021

Objectives The purpose of this study is to provide an updated profile of gamblers and problem gamblers in Canada and to identify characteristics most strongly associated with problem gambling. Methods An assessment of gambling participation and problem gambling was included in the 2018 Canadian Community Health Survey and administered to 23,952 individuals 18 years and older. Descriptive statistics provided a demographic profile for each type of gambling involvement as well as category of gambler (non-gambler, non-problem gambler, at-risk gambler, problem gambler). A logistic regression identified characteristics that best distinguished problem from non-problem gamblers. Results Gambling participation and problem gambling both varied as a function of gender, income, educational attainment, and race/ethnicity. However, multivariate analysis identified electronic gambling machine (EGM) participation to be the primary predictor of problem gambling status, with race/ethnicity, presence of a mood disorder, male gender, casino table game participation, older age, a greater level of smoking, participation in speculative financial activity, instant lottery participation, lower household income, and lottery or raffle ticket participation providing additional predictive power. Provincial EGM density and EGM participation rates are also very strong predictors of provincial rates of at-risk and problem gambling. Conclusion Problem gambling has a biopsychosocial etiology, determined by personal vulnerability factors combined with the presence of riskier types of gambling such as EGMs. Effective prevention requires a multifaceted approach, but constraints on the availability and operation of EGMs would likely have the greatest single public health benefit.

International Gambling Studies, 2024

Responsible Gambling/Harm Minimization (RG/HM) measures have the potential to reduce population level gambling harms. The present study examines Canadian casino electronic gaming machine (EGM) players’ (n = 2808) awareness of a selection of the available RG/HM measures, and the impact they believed these measures had on their gambling expenditure and enjoyment. The results showed that Canadian casino EGM players were generally aware of most of the measures, with this awareness being significantly higher among at-risk and problem/pathological gamblers. However, these measures had very little perceived impact on their gambling expenditure or enjoyment. Subsequent multivariate analyzes found that a) increased levels of overall awareness of RG/HM measures were related to male gender, younger age, and higher importance of gambling as a leisure activity; b) that decreased perceived expenditure from RG/HM measures were related to younger age, being an at-risk gambler, and the frequency of limit setting in the context of gambling play; and c) increased perceived enjoyment from RG/HM measures were related to lower household incomes. Messages targeted at Canadian casino EGM players who appear sensitive to the potential and actual harms of gambling, and messages relating to limit setting frequency in the context of gambling play, may impact gambling perceptions.

Critical Gambling Studies

The responsible gambling approach is the subject of significant debate in the scientific community due to its tendency to individualize responsibility, focusing heavily on the gambler’s responsibility for gambling-related harm. Despite the gambler, and their responsibility, being the focus of responsible gambling discourse, their voices and perspectives remain largely absent. This study aims to address this limitation by documenting the social representations of the concept of responsibility held by gamblers themselves. How does the gambler perceive the concept of responsibility? Do they have an individual-centred understanding of this concept or are they able to distinguish their individual responsibility from that of the other stakeholders? This qualitative research is based on semi-structured interviews with 30 young adults (aged between 18 and 30 years old) who participated in gambling activities in the year preceding the research interview (2018). The results reveal that the so...

Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 1999

This is the final text version of the article published as: Moore, S. M., & Ohtsuka, K. (1999). Beliefs about control over gambling among young people, and their relation to problem gambling. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 13, 339-347.

Leisure Sciences, 2012

Gambling has attracted minimal recent research in leisure studies. Focusing on Indigenous Australian gambling, this paper draws on theoretical frameworks in leisure and gambling to develop gambling involvement profiles. Using qualitative methods, 169 Indigenous Australians were interviewed. Thematic analysis generated three typical gambler profileslight, binge and heavy gamblers -distinguishable by different gambling behaviors, motivations and consequences. Analysis of the dimensions of leisure involvement revealed that light and heavy gamblers differed according to importance/interest, pleasure, centrality, self-expression, social bonding, risk probability and risk consequence. The paper demonstrates the application to gambling of certain leisure involvement constructs.