Gambling Among Young People, 837 kB

Foreword
Our habits, both positive ones and the ones with destructive qualities, are established already at a
young age. Living conditions during childhood have an impact not only on the living situation of
children and young people but also on their habits and way of life. This also applies to young people’s
attitudes to gambling. Public Health Objective 11 includes the aim of reducing the damaging effects
of too much gambling.
In 1999, the Swedish National Institute of Public Health was commissioned to continually follow the
development of pathological gambling and to strive to reduce the damaging effects of too much gambling.
Since 2003, the Institute has been able to carry out parts of a proposed action plan on pathological
gambling that was submitted to the Government in January 2003. One of the main aspects in the
action plan deals with examining the gambling habits of young people and developing methods to
reduce the damaging effects of gambling.
Despite the fact that young people gamble less than adults, a greater proportion of young people
suffer from gambling-related problems. We have, however, not as much knowledge about the gambling
habits and problems of children and young people as we do about the gambling of adults.
This review of young people’s gambling habits forms part of the work being carried out to achieve
the aims set out in the action plan. The Maria Ungdom Clinic (an addiction clinic for adolescents) in
Stockholm has also started working on a development project this year. The aim is to produce suitable
treatment measures for adolescents with gambling problems and to create preventive measures. The
intention for the long term is to create a centre of knowledge for adolescents with gambling problems.
This review is based on articles that have been published in scientific periodicals, a couple of
unpublished reports and presentations at international conferences. Knowledge gained from study
visits to research centres and treatment clinics for adolescents who are pathological gamblers is also
included.
The review has been written by public health planner Frida Fröberg at the Swedish National
Institute of Public Health. Dr. Anders Tengström from the Research Centre for the Psychosocial
Health of Young People at the Maria Ungdom Clinic and the Karolinska Institutet (FORUM) was the
scientific supervisor. Anders Tengström has also co-authored the sections on the quality of the assessment
tools and the risk factors of pathological gambling in young people.
Professor emeritus Sten Rönnberg and Professor Håkan Stattin have also contributed valuable
input to an early version of the report. The author has, however, the sole responsibility for the final
wording of the report.
A special thank you also to Dr. Rina Gupta and Dr. Jeffrey Deverensky and the staff at the
International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems, as well as Geneviève Siebes and Christian
Carpenter at the Centre Dollard-Cormier, who have kindly shared their experience of treating young
people with gambling problems.
Stockholm 16th October 2006
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