Gambling can cause many harms and can lead to self-harm. Self-harm includes any thoughts or actions related to injuring oneself or committing suicide. This article reviewed studies that tested for a link between gambling and self-harm. The authors found 190 relevant studies, most of which were surveyed participants only once. Many of these studies showed a link between problem gambling and suicide attempts. One study that followed participants over several years found that people with gambling disorder were at a higher risk of committing suicide. Few studies looked at the relationship between gambling and non-suicidal self-harm. The authors suggest several areas for future work, including meta-analyses (statistical analysis that combines study results) of the current literature.
