Gambling ads may strongly influence some people to gamble, while barely affecting other people. However, few studies have tested what factors affect the influence of gambling ads. This study looked for the links between people’s personality traits, social support, and how they remember and respond to gambling ads. Adult participants in France completed an online survey about their gambling behaviour, social supports, and personality traits. They then viewed nine slogans from gambling ads from the previous year. Participants reported if they remembered the ads and if the ads influenced them to gamble. Overall, participants who were more neurotic were more likely to engage in high-risk gambling. Additionally, participants with less social support remembered more gambling slogans and had higher intention to gamble after seeing gambling ads. So, people with lower social support may be more influenced by gambling ads.
