Prevalence of gambling problems among adolescents in the Nordic countries: an overview of national gambling surveys 1997–2009

Kristiansen S, Jensen SM. Prevalence of gambling problems among adolescents in the Nordic countries: an overview of national gambling surveys 1997–2009 Int J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 75–86 © 2009 The Author(s), Journal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare. The study presents an overview of prevalence studies focusing on problem and pathological gambling among adolescent populations in the Nordic countries. Past‐year prevalence of problem gambling among adolescents in the Nordic countries ranges from 0.4 per cent (Denmark) to 4.2 per cent (Sweden). Past‐year prevalence of pathological gambling ranges from 0.1 per cent (Denmark) to 1.76 per cent (Norway). Results from the Nordic countries also show that boys gamble more than girls, older adolescents gamble more than younger adolescents and that, as shown in adult prevalence surveys, problem gambling is more widespread among adolescents than among adults. It is concluded that investigations of gambling problems among adolescents in the Nordic countries differ regarding age groups, sampling procedures, response rates, nomenclature and screening instruments, all of which complicates valid comparisons. More collaboration between researchers from different countries is urged in order to improve comparability between national studies.     

Pathways to Problem Gambling in Seniors

Little is known about problem gambling in older adults, particularly when gambling problems only commence late in life. Knowledge of pathways to later life problem gambling can assist prompt and effective interventions for vulnerable older adults. This study builds on a generic Pathways Model. It proposes routes to problem gambling for individuals aged 55 years and above, with a particular focus on late-life, rather than lifetime problem gambling. Gambling-related risk and protective factors/correlates were extracted from the literature based on the extent to which the studies were senior-specific. Common themes were then identified and classified into 3 main clusters: 1 concerning individual vulnerability factors, a 2nd concerning social and environmental factors, and a 3rd concerning factors affecting behavioural regulation.     

心理学文化意识演变中的反思与追问——兼论人类行为机制探究的新视角

文化、意识与行为的关系是心理学文化意识演变中的核心问题。通过对三者关系的不断反思与追问,得出：语言以及由诸符号所构成的神话、宗教、艺术、科学等文化形式是探究人类行为机制的新视角。     

The relationship between gambling accessibility and Hong Kong people's participation in gambling activities

Prior foreign research showed significant positive relationship between geographical accessibility, gambling advertising and gambling behaviors. This paper, using data from two studies, describes and discusses the change in prevalence of gambling in Hong Kong with the liberalization of gambling activities in Macau. Results mirror the findings of foreign studies. Analysis showed that the groups who indicated that they were mostly influenced by the increased number of Macau casinos and gambling advertising were those aged 20–39, those with tertiary or above education, and the problem and pathological gamblers. Policy makers and gaming operators' effort to implement responsible gambling policies to prevent gambling addiction are discussed.     

GENDER DIFFERENCES IN AUSTRALIAN GAMBLING: A CRITICAL SUMMARY OF SOCIOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Despite frequent reports on the significant increase in the number of women gambling in Australia, there has been relatively little detailed research undertaken to address the issue. This paper provides a critical summary of recent Australian findings and their implications for future research and clinical interventions. Its conclusion is that while gender is a strong predictor of preferences for gambling activities, more carefully designed studies must be conducted to determine whether gender influences other facets of gambling behaviour. This is principally because of the difficulty associated with accounting for the confounding effects of gender and activity preferences and the omission of male comparison groups in some gender studies.     

唐代中印文化交流及其历史启示

中印两国的文化交流源远流长,到唐朝,两国之间的文化交流达到高潮,佛教、道教及其他文化因素在两国之间均有良好的对话与互动。引发和促进这种传播与互动的原因是十分复杂的,给人们留下的有益经验与成功启示也是弥足珍贵的,值得我们深刻的反思。     

Gambling Behaviors Among Oxford House Residents: A Preliminary Investigation

The present study investigated the prevalence of gambling behaviors among 71 individuals recovering from substance-dependent disorders and living in self-run recovery homes (Oxford Houses). Residents were given the South Oaks Gambling Screen to assess gambling behaviors and pathological gambling, and 19.7% of the sample was identified as having probable pathological gambling. These residents reported proportionately more involvement in a variety of gambling behaviors than other residents. Engagement in various gambling activities was consistent with previous investigations and suggested that self-run recovery homes such as Oxford Houses might be suitable referral sources for recovering persons who have comorbid gambling problems.     

Gambling in Australian Indigenous communities: the state of play

Gambling has both positive aspects and negative effects for Australian Indigenous gamblers and families. While traditional card games organised by the communities themselves have been found to have important social value, there is increasing evidence that commercial gambling such as gaming machines (‘pokies‘), casinos and TAB betting has a range of far‐reaching negative social and economic consequences for Indigenous population groups. However an understanding of participation by Indigenous people in contemporary gambling is still undeveloped and is dominated by western concepts. The cultural distinctiveness and complexity of Indigenous Australia create profound conceptual and methodological difficulties with the potential to distort the research process and outcomes, as well as policy solutions. The current lack of understanding also impacts on the cultural relevance and effectiveness of service provision for Indigenous gamblers, their families and communities.     

A Process Approach to the Utility for Gambling

This paper argues that any specific utility or disutility for gambling must be excluded from expected utility because such a theory is consequential while a pleasure or displeasure for gambling is a matter of process, not of consequences. A (dis)utility for gambling is modeled as a process utility which monotonically combines with expected utility restricted to consequences. This allows for a process (dis)utility for gambling to be revealed. As an illustration, the model shows how empirical observations in the Allais paradox can reveal a process disutility of gambling. A more general model of rational behavior combining processes and consequences is then proposed and discussed.     

Senior Gambling: Risk or Reward?

For a growing number of older adults, a day outing to a local casino has become one of the more enjoyable and accessible opportunities for socialization and entertainment. Unfortunately, for some older adults this growing pastime increases their risk for developing a gambling problem or, worse yet, a gambling addiction. The consequences of problematic gambling behaviors for individuals living on a fixed income require greater attention by social work researchers, practitioners, and providers of senior services. The development and implementation of a Gambling Education Workshop for older adults attending senior centers in a large metropolitan area, along with qualitative interviews with a sample of workshop participants, are reported in this article. Among the findings from this project are the needs for greater awareness of the risk factors associated with problematic gambling, as well as greater awareness among older adults about the consequences associated with gambling.     

Gambling Behaviors Among Oxford House Residents: A Preliminary Investigation

ABSTRACT

The present study investigated the prevalence of gambling behaviors among 71 individuals recovering from substance-dependent disorders and living in self-run recovery homes (Oxford Houses). Residents were given the South Oaks Gambling Screen to assess gambling behaviors and pathological gambling, and 19.7% of the sample was identified as having probable pathological gambling. These residents reported proportionately more involvement in a variety of gambling behaviors than other residents. Engagement in various gambling activities was consistent with previous investigations and suggested that self-run recovery homes such as Oxford Houses might be suitable referral sources for recovering persons who have comorbid gambling problems.     

Predictors of gambling problems among male adolescents

The study concerns prediction of gambling problems in 178 male adolescents (aged 16 and 18 years) who completed a questionnaire, which included the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS), a version of the Temperament and Character Inventory and a number of questions concerning social background, emotional and life-style factors. About 27% of the boys gamble at least weekly. As many as 16% qualify as probable pathological gamblers according to the SOGS. Another 7% are at risk. None of the social background factors are related to severity of gambling problems. The only significant family factor is parental substance misuse. The optimal multivariate model predicts about 30% of the variance in gambling problems. The strongest factor is frequency of alcohol drinking. Several factors indicate a personality with problems in relations to others. Another factor indicates a dreamy personality. Unexpectedly, impulsiveness is not related to gambling. In conclusion, problem gambling among male adolescents is related to life-style and personality, especially in relation to others, but not to usual social background factors. Gamblers are asocial rather than impulsive. The nature of this finding should be further explored, since an asocial personality may point at genetics as well as to early social influences, as may the finding on the relation between gambling and parental drinking.     

Intentional exposure studies of environmental agents on human subjects: assessing benefits and risks

In this article, I assess the benefits and risks of studies that intentionally expose research subjects to environmental agents. I describe these types of studies, identify their benefits and risks, compare them to other research methods that can be used to investigate the relationship between environmental exposures and disease, and discuss some issues related to research design and risk minimization. I argue that the benefits of intentional environmental exposure studies outweigh the risks when 1) the knowledge gained is likely to improve our understanding of the relationship between environmental exposure and disease, 2) this knowledge cannot be obtained by other methods, 3) the experiments are well designed, 4) the subjects will receive some benefits, such as medical evaluations, 5) risks are minimized, and 6) the risks to human subjects are less than those encountered in a typical Phase I drug study. Only in rare circumstances (i.e., when an intentional environmental exposure study is needed to implement an important environmental or public health intervention or regulation) may such studies expose research subjects to risks as high as those encountered in a typical Phase I drug trail.     

Intentional Exposure Studies of Environmental Agents on Human Subjects: Assessing Benefits and Risks∗

In this article, I assess the benefits and risks of studies that intentionally expose research subjects to environmental agents. I describe these types of studies, identify their benefits and risks, compare them to other research methods that can be used to investigate the relationship between environmental exposures and disease, and discuss some issues related to research design and risk minimization. I argue that the benefits of intentional environmental exposure studies outweigh the risks when 1) the knowledge gained is likely to improve our understanding of the relationship between environmental exposure and disease, 2) this knowledge cannot be obtained by other methods, 3) the experiments are well designed, 4) the subjects will receive some benefits, such as medical evaluations, 5) risks are minimized, and 6) the risks to human subjects are less than those encountered in a typical Phase I drug study. Only in rare circumstances (i.e., when an intentional environmental exposure study is needed to implement an important environmental or public health intervention or regulation) may such studies expose research subjects to risks as high as those encountered in a typical Phase I drug trail.     

Legal gambling availability and youth gambling behaviour: A qualitative longitudinal study

In many countries, gambling has gained status as a socially accepted form of entertainment. Studies of how and to what extent young people are influenced by changes in gambling availability are relatively inconclusive, and knowledge of why youth gambling behaviours increase or decrease under changing conditions is sparse. This study addressed this situation by examining qualitatively how young people experience and respond to changes in gambling opportunities. The research presented in the article is part of a large longitudinal study of gambling behaviours among Danish adolescents. Data were collected over a period of 3 years with three waves of interviews with a 10- to12-month frequency. A number of issues were identified and these were integrated into four overarching analytical themes: legislation, conditions of entry, proximity and technological innovations. Implications for further research and policy are considered.     

Migrant associations: the Spanish transatlantic experience, 1870–1970

This article offers some historiographical, theoretical and methodological reflections on Spanish migrant associationism in several countries (mainly, Latin America) during the period of mass migration that began in the 1870s and continued until the 1970s, which might also be extrapolated to other European cases. The discussion starts with a review of the literature on migrant associations in Iberian migration studies. Some of the limitations inherent in migrant associations as objects of study are then considered and problem areas that remain relatively unexplored are highlighted alongside a comparison with those approaches that are used in the analysis of other European immigrant groups in the USA and Latin America. Finally the article discusses the interaction of migrant elites, ordinary immigrants’ necessities and the influence of the host societies. The conclusions insist on the fact that associationism can offer an informative kaleidoscope through which to examine immigrant collectives, not just organized communities. Appropriate use of the sources produced by associations can shed light on settlement patterns, socio-professional composition, the social origin of elites, rootedness or image in the host country and the comparative history of migration.     

Gambling: A Social Problem?

This paper reports the results from a national survey of gambling behavior, social problems, and attitudes toward the legalization of gambling. Non-bettors perceived more negative consequences and fewer positive consequences associated with the legalization of gambling than did bettors. One negative consequence perceived by a majority of both groups was an increase in political corruption. The level of gambling activity was positively associated with several social problems such as divorce, absenteeism, and frequency of alcohol consumption. Respondents who were classified as probable compulsive gamblers reported more family problems.     

文化、历史中的“民族精神”——陶云逵与中国人类学的德国因素

本文通过民国时期人类学家陶云逵这一个案,来梳理德国“文化”概念经过中国学者的思考和运用进入中国社会科学的历程。作为第一位运用“文化”理论进行实地经验研究的中国学者,陶云逵在实证研究中思考如何保存“文化”自身的神圣性,肯定人的精神价值,对各文化之间如何相互沟通和理解问题展开过深入的讨论。这些讨论不仅在人类学内部有意义,而且构成了人类学、社会学与哲学和历史学对话的可能。本文跟随陶云逵的理论和实证研究脚步,呈现他在文化理论和方法论上的探索,并试图指出,陶云逵对“文化”如何制约“国家”的政治经济权力提出有力的现实和历史证据。     

Researching Homelessness and Rough Sleeping in the Scottish Context

This paper offers some reflections on a number of methodological and personal issues associated with researching homelessness, particularly in the Scottish context. It opens with an examination of the political and social construction of statistics on homelessness. It highlights the limitations of official data sources, and outlines the problems in quantifying (or even estimating) the extent of one of the most extreme manifestations of homelessness—rough sleeping. It identifies some other practical difficulties in conducting research amongst homeless people, such as setting and meeting interview targets, and questions the perceived level of risk in conducting face-to-face work with street homeless people. The second part of the paper considers a range of ethical tensions, posing a series of dilemmas which can arise for an academic researching homelessness. It is suggested that these issues and concerns could be widely applied to social policy research, and are therefore of equal relevance to academic researchers involved with any groups affected by poverty and social exclusion. Drawing on recent controversial practice debates, the paper questions the role of the researcher in perpetuating the so-called 'homelessness industry'. Finally, the paper argues that the researcher should seek opportunities to enhance user-involvement policy development as well as research. The paper suggests that researchers in the field of homelessness occupy a privileged position, providing a link between homeless people, agencies responsible for policy and practice, and politicians. It concludes that research can make a real contribution to understanding and alleviating homelessness. This, it argues, is the only valid justification for making a living out of homelessness research.