Gambling is a fun pastime that can also provide a sense of excitement, especially when luck is on your side. However, gambling is not without its risks and can quickly become a problem when a person starts to lose control.
The reason is that gambling relies on the element of chance, which is unpredictable and inescapable. It is this element that makes gambling a risky activity and often leads to addiction.
Gambling involves placing a bet on an event, such as a football match or scratchcard. This bet is then matched to ‘odds’, which are the probability that you will win. These odds are not always easy to understand and can be misleading, especially when it comes to scratchcards where the chances of winning aren’t clear.
Some people gamble as a way of self-soothing unpleasant feelings or as an outlet for boredom or stress. However, there are healthier and more effective ways to manage these feelings, such as exercising, spending time with friends who don’t gamble, practicing relaxation techniques or taking up a new hobby.
Research has focused on the positive effects of gambling at a community/society level, such as tax revenues and public services benefits, but less attention has been given to negative social impacts on individuals and their families. To address this gap, we propose to use a health economic approach that uses quality of life weights to measure the social impact of gambling on individuals and their family members.