The sure way of getting nothing from something.”
This quote very beautifully captures the essence of gambling and its consequences.
Gambling is a relatively common activity that is played in almost every society. It involves taking a risk with the hope of gaining money. Some of the common gambling activities include playing casino games like poker, betting money on lotteries or sports, and bingo. According to the motivation theory, individuals are intrinsically motivated to engage in gambling and extrinsically motivated to socialize with others. For the past many years, gambling has been glorified in media and films which makes it an appealing activity. However, gambling as a hobby soon turns into an addiction.
Gambling addiction is also sometimes referred to as a gambling disorder or pathological gambling. It is often not visible and difficult to identify when it turns into an addiction.
One of the reasons why gambling turns into addiction is the reward associated with it. Each time the individual receives a reward, the hope of winning it again increases, eventually leading to increased participation. Similar to alcohol and drug addiction, gambling addiction also involves a euphoric experience after winning a big amount. Feeling of being fortunate and in control of the situation, each time the individual wins make him/her engage further with the game. Therefore, there is a likelihood of gambling becoming a compulsive and everyday behavior. People affected by gambling addiction experience additional difficulties as well. They are often not able to focus on anything else and are preoccupied with the thought of winning big and about the next game. They also lie about their gambling habits and engage in acts like cheating and stealing. Due to compulsive behavior, it is difficult to control the urge to gamble and people often end up participating in it further leading to familial and financial issues. In extreme cases, people might experience personality issues, severe mood swings, and become violent.
Some of the risk factors of gambling addiction include the environment, family history, and personality traits. Environmental factors like peer pressure greatly influence the tendency to engage in gambling. Genetics and family environment also are major predictors of gambling addiction. Finally, personality traits like impulsivity, competitiveness, and restlessness also lead to gambling addiction.
Treatment approaches for gambling addiction should be taken seriously before it causes serious behavioral disturbances. Therapeutic techniques like the habit reversal technique can be applied in which the urge to engage in gambling is replaced by an adaptive behavior. Individual psychotherapy and group therapy can also be applied which focuses on response prevention.
Importance of Professional Counseling: A friend or family member may listen to you, but they aren’t professionally, technically qualified or experienced to offer you professional advice. If you wish you can contact us at MindTribe to receive help from our team of expert psychologists.
About MindTribe.in.
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About the Author.
Dhruv Beri is a psychologist at MindTribe.in. You can learn more about him by clicking here
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of MindTribe.in, the Founders, or management team.
Acknowledgement: All images used are open source and from Unsplash.