A current health issue in Australia particularly in Ballarat, Victoria, is gambling. Gambling harms communities and its members through relationship breakdowns that can lead to domestic violence. Furthermore, the effects of gambling can impact workplaces and academic responsibilities because of poor performance, job loss, and absenteeism. Gambling leads to financial burdens including accumulating debts and asset losses that can result in unpaid debts and unable to pay for basic needs such as groceries and utility bills. This can lead to actions such as theft, imprisonment, and bankruptcy or divorce proceedings, causing further impacts on communities and on the public purse, for instance, charities and human services agencies that work with individuals and families to assist in health and wellbeing issues caused by gambling. This essay will examine the physical, mental and social wellbeing of problem gambling effects and social determinants that influence gambling. Furthermore, this essay will discuss challenges experienced by communities, views of the community, as well as planning and management issues linked to gambling. While gambling is not traditionally a disease like human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), heart disease or Alzheimer’s disease, it, however, does cause health issues that impact communities just the same. Pokie machines have become a form of entertainment in most Australian communities and according to Victorian data from The Pokies Play You (2016) website,

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Can Child Adolesc Psychiatr Rev. 2004 Feb; 13(1): 3–6.

Effects Of Gambling On The Economy

PMID: 19030146

Gambling becomes an addiction when it is something you or a loved one cannot control and when it begins to affect a person’s financial, familial, social, recreational, educational, or occupational functioning. 1,2 Gambling addiction, much like some forms of substance addiction, is associated with a release of dopamine in the brain as much as 10 times more than what is normal. 3 Dopamine has been referred to as the “feel good” neurotransmitter, and this special signaling chemical is. Of economic renewal through gambling, particularly through the development of casinos and betting centers. The youth especially university students have resulted into betting and at times they do it at the expense of education. In several instances university students have committed suicide after losing on bets, some have. Negative Effects of Gambling. Games offered in casinos, table games like poker, Red Dog, and Blackjack, as also electronic games like Slot Machine and Video Poker are some of the common types of gambling. Card games, coin tossing, and dice-based games are some non-casino based forms of gambling. Of economic renewal through gambling, particularly through the development of casinos and betting centers. The youth especially university students have resulted into betting and at times they do it at the expense of education. In several instances university students.

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Abstract

Introduction

The recent growth of gambling problems among youth around the world is alarming. Researchers, clinicians, educators and the public have only begun to recognize the significance of this risky adolescent behaviour. With the continuous rise in gambling technology and the expansion of the gambling industry, more gambling opportunities exist today than ever before.

Method

The literature on gambling and youth was reviewed.

Results

Given the greater accessibility, availability, and promotion of gambling, more and more youth have become attracted to the perceived excitement, entertainment, and financial freedom associated with gambling. While Internet gambling is a recent phenomenon that remains to be explored, the potential for future problems among youth is high, especially among a generation of young people who have grown up with videogames, computers, and the Internet.

Conclusion

Our current knowledge and understanding of the seriousness of gambling problems, its magnitude, and its impact on the health and well-being of children and youth compels us to respond to these new forms of gambling in a timely and effective manner.

Keywords: gambling, internet, addictive, behaviours, child, adolescent

Résumé

L’accroissement des problèmes reliés au jeu chez les jeunes du monde entier est inquiétant. Les chercheurs, les cliniciens, les éducateurs et le public lui-même commencent à reconnaître le sérieux d’un tel comportement à risque avec le raffinement des techniques de jeu et le développement accéléré de cette industrie, il existe de plus en plus d’occasions de s’adonner au jeu. La literature sur la jeunesse et le jeu a été rééxaminée. Ainsi, à cause de l’augmentation des occasions et de la promotion du jeu, de plus en plus de jeunes sont attirés par l’excitation, l’aspect spectacle et le sentiment de pouvoir s’enrichir, attributs qu’ils accolent au plaisir du jeu. Bien que le jeu sur Internet soit un phénomène encore récent, le potentiel d’un nombre accru de problèmes chez les jeunes est élevé, particulièrement chez la jeune génération qui a grandi avec les jeux vidéo, les ordinateurs et l’Internet. La literature sur la jeunesse et le jeu a été rééxaminée. Nos connaissances actuelles et notre compréhension du sérieux des problèmes de jeu, leur fréquence ainsi que leur impact sur la santé et le bien-être des enfants et des adolescents nous forcent à trouver des réponses concrètes et efficaces à ces nouvelles formes de jeu.

INTRODUCTION

Today’s children and teens in North America are the first generation of youth to grow up in a society where a multiplicity of types of gambling exists, and gambling venues are not only widely available but also heavily advertised and promoted. Gambling, once considered to be associated with sin and vice is now generally perceived as a harmless adult entertainment and has become mainstream in our society. Although in Canada government regulated gambling is illegal for youth under the age of 18, a growing number of young people are gambling for recreation and entertainment (). With increased exposure to, and availability of regulated and unregulated forms of gambling, including the recent emergence of Internet gambling, more youth are succumbing to the temptation and pressure to engage in these activities (). There is a growing body of research suggesting that greater accessibility is related to increased gambling, increased money spent on gambling, and increased rates of problem gambling (Griffiths, 1995). Research in Canada, the U.S., and internationally suggests that approximately 80% of adolescents have participated in some form of gambling during their lifetime (see the review by the National Research Council, 1999 and meta-analysis by ).

Most alarming is evidence indicating that between 4–8% of adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 have a very serious gambling problem, while another 10–15% are at-risk for developing a gambling problem (Derevensky & Gupta, 2000; ; National Research Council, 1999). Further, while there are some methodological issues involved in the measurement of pathological gambling for youth, there are consistent reports that the prevalence rates of probable pathological gambling in youth (4–8%) are considerably higher than rates of pathological gambling in the general adult population (1–3%) (; National Research Council, 1999).

Pathological gambling can be described as a continuous or periodic loss of control over gambling and is highlighted by irrational thinking and erroneous cognitions, a preoccupation with gambling and with obtaining money to gamble, continuation with gambling despite adverse consequences, and an inability to stop gambling despite having the desire to do so (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Between 1984 and 1999 there was a significant increase in the proportion of youth who reported gambling within the past year as well as those

Effects Of Gambling On Youth