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Definition of Pathological
Gambling
by Jerry "Jet"
Whittaker
Aug 5, 2006
Gambling Disorder
There are many sides to the topic of gambling. For some,
gambling is just a sport or a hobby. For others it is
even a way of earning money. However, there are many
people who get addicted to gambling. This is where the
whole trouble begins. Pathological gambling is a concept
connected to gambling addiction and to the negative
aspects of gambling.
Pathological Issues
So, what exactly does pathological gambling mean? To
define it precisely, pathological gambling is a disorder
related to gambling. The American Psychiatric
Association has explained pathological gambling as a
problem wherein an individual faces impulse control with
respect to gambling. It is a mental sickness that
becomes progressive and chronic. Pathological gambling
can be observed to a great extent among gamblers.
According to the statistics, approximately 4-6% of the
gamblers suffer from this disorder. Also, youngsters
suffer from this disease the most. They are about three
times more prone to it than adults.
With several modifications, the most recent definition
if pathological gambling, has changed slightly. If the
individual shows a constant or repeated maladaptive
gambling behavior then he is said to suffer from
pathological gambling. There are about 4-5 main factors
that determine that an individual has been adversely
affected by gambling. The major factors are as follows:
1) An individual constantly thinks about gambling
games and his gambling experiences. They may either be
past or present experiences. They also tend to fantasize
future gambling experiences.
2) If the individual has to discontinue gambling or
decrease its frequency he becomes very irritable,
restless and frustrated.
3) Yet another symptom of pathological gambling is
that the individual gambles in order to escape from his
problems. To escape from his personal or professional
tensions, he finds solace in gambling.
4) Gamblers lose huge amounts of money. To retrieve
this lost money, they gamble even more. This is a
vicious cycle that the individuals find themselves in
very often.
5) Individuals face severe personal and professional
upheavals due to their constant gambling. Broken
families and homes and low productivity at work are some
of the major consequences of such problem gambling.
6) Very often individuals indulge in illegal acts of
gambling to try and win as much money as possible.
All these signs portray the aspect of
pathological
gambling very clearly. As the number of people
indulging in gambling increases, pathological gambling
has also seen an upward trend.
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