Gambling Among Young People, 837 kB

other addictions
According to most studies, young people who gamble often and with high stakes also consume more
alcohol than their peers who gamble less. The corresponding link also exists between being a problem/pathological
gambler and having other types of addiction problems with alcohol and drugs, a
connection that is particularly clear in boys (3, 12, 21, 32–34, 59, 60, 67–70, 72, 85, 87, 90, 95–99).
differences between young pathological gamblers
and young problem gamblers
In the above-mentioned longitudinal study by Winters and Stinchfield in Minnesota in the USA, 305
young people were followed from the age of 16 to the age of 24. The young people were not only
asked about their gambling habits, problem/pathological gambling but also about their mental health,
crime, schoolwork and their parents’ gambling history. It was clear that young pathological gamblers
and young problem gamblers respectively and those
without a problem differed in a number of ways. The
young people who were pathological gamblers suffered
from mental ill health, for example depression
and anxiety symptoms, more often than other young
people including those with a gambling problem.
These young people also tended to have parents who
were problem/pathological gamblers compared to the
other young people in the study. The young people
who had a gambling problem were, on the other hand,
more prone to criminal behaviour compared to both
young people without a gambling problem and those
who were pathological gamblers. Two of the groups,
problem gamblers and pathological gamblers, had
difficulties at school and the young people in these
groups had started gambling earlier than other young
people (74).
Pathological gambling – not a chronic state
Only very few studies have followed young people over a number of years to see how their problem or
pathological gambling has developed and whether the problems remain in adulthood or whether there
has been an improvement. However, according to the few studies that are available problem gambling
in young people does not appear to be a “chronic state”. Usually it is seems to be a temporary state
that abates with age.
An American study by Slutske, Jackson and Sher followed 468 university students over an elevenyear
period, from the age of 18–19 to 30. The proportion who were problem/pathological gamblers in
the group remained constant throughout the period, at 2–3 per cent. However, at each interview new
people, 1–2 per cent of all the students had developed a gambling problem/addiction while others had
improved. A person who had had gambling problems at one stage increased the risk of suffering from
such a problem later on in life. The risk was greatest 3 to 4 years after the initial gambling problem
had surfaced but with time the risk decreased, even if it was still higher than for those who had never
had a problem (73).
Winters and Stinchfield followed 305 young people in Minnesota, USA, from the age of 16 to the
age of 24 and asked them about possible problem/pathological gambling at three opportunities. They
found that most were totally problem free for the entire period (60 per cent). Second most common
was being a problem or pathological gambler at two but not all three of the screenings (34 per cent).
Only 4 per cent were problem or pathological gamblers for the entire period, at all three screenings.
Those who were pathological gamblers seemed to have a less temporary problem than those who had
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