Problem Gambling
 

by Jerry "Jet" Whittaker

December 3, 2006

A gambling behavior which causes major disruptions in any major area of life whether physiological, physical, social or vocational is collectively known as problem gambling. It can be said that problem gambling is that form of gambling which goes beyond “normal” bounds of gambling for fun, recreation or entertainment. Problem gambling is often referred to as pathological or compulsive form of gambling where the gambler becomes unable to resist the impulses to gambling over an extended period of time. Pathological or problem gamblers often feel the need to bet more frequently and in larger amounts, and continue to gamble in spite of the serious negative consequences of their behavior. An important thing to note here is that anyone who gambles a lot for the sake of enjoying gambling as an entertainment will not be considered as a pathological gambler provided they set aside a predetermined amount of money for gambling, gamble for fun rather than for the "certainty" of winning, recognize that they are likely to lose, and don't bet more than they can afford to lose.

Phases of problem gambling

The experts of the related field have divided the journey of a casual gambler towards becoming a problem gambler into three main phases which are listed as under:

The adventurous phase – This phase is generally characterized by the growing desire of the person to gamble as excitement which often include a big win and which the person takes as a result of his or her personal abilities.

The losing phase – As the name suggests this phase includes heavy loses in the part of the gambler as a result of which he starts betting with an increased amount of money with the aim of chasing the money he or she has lost.

The desperation phase – This is the final phase where gambling become full time obsession for the person and he or she starts gambling in credit and start taking greater and greater risks. This phase is also leads to mental and emotional breakdown, theft and even suicide.

These phases however don’t necessarily holds correct at anytime and every time. There can be seen cases where people experiencing big win do not become pathological gambler and some who chase their losses often stop before reaching the desperation phase.

Kind of people becoming problem gambler

Any one in this world can be converted into a problem or a pathological gambler age, sex, race or color. However a recent survey done in this field has reveled that young adults, ethnic minorities, and people with little education were slightly more likely to have serious gambling problems, but the differences were not very large.

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