Pathological gambling: causes and symptoms of gambling addiction

Addiction among gambling addicts, an invisible problem.

The compulsive gambling is one of the most common addictions in the Western world. But what exactly do we know about pathological gambling, and are we prepared for this growing form of psychological disorder?

Pathological gambling or gambling addiction: a drug-free form of addiction

Neither gambling nor its associated problems are new in our society. Gambling for pleasure, leisure or gainful purposes has been around since our earliest trials. As old as gambling is pathological gamblingThe latter is understood as the loss of control over games of chance in which bets are made, such as slot machines, bingos, casinos or coupons, sports betting and private games.

Fernandez-Montalvo and López-Goñi (2012) describe the pathological gambler as emotionally dependent on gambling, with loss of control and its corresponding negative impact on their daily life. This dependence may be generated by the false expectation of winning in order to win back what has been lost; cognitive distortion or erroneous thinking that maintains the gambling spiral. Lying and concealment of gambling is another major characteristic observable in this disorder.

Gambling being a normalized social behavior, in the pathological gambler or pathological gambler it increases so much in frequency of episodes (daily normally) and bet fortune (economic fundamentally); involved in games of chance, destroying their family and work life.. In fact, the word ludopathy comes from the Latin ludus, 'game', and from the Greek patheia, 'suffering' or 'affection'; i.e. "pathological gambling" (Capetillo-Ventura, Jalil-Pérez, 2014).

Pathological gambling is a relatively common disorder, as it is estimated that approximately 5% of adults experienced problem gambling (A.P.A, 1980). Epidemiological data indicate that four out of five adults (78.4%) have gambled at least once in their lifetime. 27.1% have gambled more than 100 times; and 10.1% more than 1000 (Kesseler et al., 2008). Pathological gambling has been studied mainly in men, since approximately two thirds of people with this disorder are men (A.P.A., 2002). However, it was not until 1980 that pathological gambling was recognized as a mental disorder by the American Psychiatric Society (A.P.A.), in the DSM-III (Potenza, 2008; Albiach, 2006; Fernandez-Montalvo and López-Goñi, 2012).

Thus, it is a relatively new disorder in the field of research compared to substance use disorders (Carragher and McWilliams, 2010). In addition to its recognition, it may be one of the most studied disorders in recent decades (Fernandez-Montalvo and López-Goñi, 2012).

Slot machines: the game that has ruined the most lives

The slot machinesis par excellence the most played game of chance in Spain. This is due, according to Fernández-Montalvo and Echeburúa (1997) to:

The course of pathological gambling tends to become chronic.It is therefore difficult for it to subside, i.e. for the person to stop gambling, without psychological intervention (Fernández-Montalvo and López-Goñi, 2012). As with other non-substance addiction disorders (food, internet, work), the person has the false belief that they are in control of their problem, and can quit without help.

Pathological gambling: a look into the future

It is possible that the growing interest in this problem is due to an increase in the number of gambling addicts; the seriousness of the problems derived from pathological gambling; and its expansion to new technologies through the Internet, thus generating greater accessibility to the Internet. greater accessibility. Regarding this last point, it is worth highlighting the many online games that are emerging every day, both via PC (for example, through the famous Facebook mini-games) and via video game console (new and incomplete games with dlc or downloadable content). We do not yet know to what extent the player's investments will increase to obtain the 'dlc or upgrades' in these types of games, but we do know that the game industries invest time in generating in their customers the need to pay to obtain these 'upgrades'.

Nor should we forget the games called 'games of chancewhich are also available on-line. The novelty here is that these games are within the reach of minors, unlike years ago, where there was not this modality of game-payment and during the game more payments (previously you paid your entire game only once). Could this be a new precedent cause of pathological gambling in the coming years? Young people who normalize payment to gamble.Could slot machine technology improve dramatically and people continue to be addicted to pathological gambling? And, could it be that people end up seeing it as 'normal' that other people gamble or invest a large part of their economy in their games, as has been happening with the excessive use of cell phones?

As we see, it is not only a question of money, but of time invested in it. It is a matter of not doing your daily tasks, not taking care of your partner, friends, work or other fundamental aspects to prioritize the game in your life.

The Health Department indicates that 95% of adolescents over 15 years old in the Valencian Community have a cell phone with Internet, thus favoring the addictive behavior associated with pathological gambling. Tomás (2014) states in this regard: "there is a fact that we would like to denounce from the Valencian Gambling Addiction Institute -the first specialized in the subject in Spain-. We find it very serious that minors are allowed to gamble in bars where there are betting machines. We know that this situation occurs and cannot be tolerated". With more and more adolescents seeking treatment for gambling problems (Fernández-Montalvo and López-Goñi, 2012), this is reason enough to encourage good use and control of new technologies as an effective intervention.

Testimony of a gambling addict

In a report by EiTBa Spaniard who suffered from gambling addiction and who explains how he experienced gambling addiction in his own flesh and how he managed to get rid of it. Here is the video.

• The possibility of betting a small amount of money y win a lot in proportion to the amount wagered.
• The short interval between the bet and the result.
• Manipulating the machine personally, generating a false false sense of control.
• The flashy elements of noises and lights that generate psychophysiological alteration.