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GREO is committed to creating and disseminating knowledge products that are based on credible research and best practices. Understanding gambling harms from a public health perspective, and developing an effective preventative strategy, involves an understanding of:
- how these harms are influenced by co-morbid mental health and substance use disorders, and
- how these disorders can impact a person's experience with gambling.
Co-morbid Conditions
Recent evidence has identified a significant relationship between gambling and a broad range of mental health conditions. An individual living with a mental health disorder can experience a greater degree of harm stemming from his or her condition when also struggling with problematic gambling behaviour. In the same vein, someone who takes greater risks when gambling and develops problematic behaviour can be more likely to experience poor mental health; their wellbeing can be affected by the outcome of their gambling habit.
Problem gamblers are much more likely to struggle with a co-morbid substance use or mental health disorder than non-gamblers or recreational gamblers. Compared to the Canadian average of 5%, studies have demonstrated that up to 32% of problem gamblers have major depression (CCHS, 2012; Quigley et al., 2015). Similarly, findings from the Canadian Community Health Survey suggest that problem gamblers are three times more likely to have attempted suicide than the general population, even after taking into account a range of other sociodemographic and psychiatric factors (Newman and Thompson, 2003).
Among problem gamblers, the odds of reporting alcohol dependence were 23 times higher than rates among the general population (Welte et al., 2001). Studies that compared people who drank while gambling compared to people who were not drinking found that those who drank demonstrated significantly more reckless gambling behaviour compared to those who didn't (Welte et al., 2004). Likewise, players who drank while gambling were much more likely to chase their losses than players who were not drinking, continuing to place bets even after losing consistently (Kyngdon and Dickerson, 1999).
The Social Determinants of Gambling Harm
The social, cultural, economic, and environmental determinants that affect individual and community health are diverse and powerful. The conditions in which an individual and their family lives, learns, works, plays, and develops are known as the social determinants of health. The relationships between these factors and their influence on individual and community health is highly complex. The disparities in health and wellbeing that exist between people because of these factors, known as health inequities, are risk factors for chronic disease and other adverse health outcomes.
Just as these inequities can influence a person's likelihood of developing a substance use or mental health problem, heart disease, or obesity, so too can the social determinants of health influence a person's experience with gambling and gambling harms. Depending on the conditions in which a person lives, works, and ages, they may be more likely to develop a gambling problem, or to suffer from the negative consequences of gambling harm. These factors include:
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To learn more about how these factors affect a person's experience with gambling and gambling harms, and what this means for the health of your community, read our report on gambling and public health:
To learn more about how our organization can help you achieve your goals and build capacity, see the Gambling Harms Map, or visit our BET: System Impact funding page for more details on how we can support your next project.
To stay up to date on emerging evidence related to gambling harm, sign up to receive customized content alerts based on your interests. Our content alert service provides periodic notifications about new evidence and other material that has been added to our Evidence Centre.
References
Kyngdon, A., & Dickerson, M. (1999). An experimental study of the effect of prior alcohol consumption on a simulated gambling activity. Addiction, 94(5), 697-707.
Newman, S. C., & Thompson, A. H. (2003). A population-based study of the association between pathological gambling and attempted suicide. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 33(1), 80-87.
Pearson, C., Janz, T., & Ali, J. (2013). Mental and substance use disorders in Canada. Ottawa, Ontario: Statistics Canada.
Quigley, L., Yakovenko, I., Hodgins, D. C., Dobson, K. S., el-Guebaly, N., Casey, D. M., ... & Schopflocher, D. P. (2015). Comorbid problem gambling and major depression in a community sample. Journal of gambling studies, 31(4), 1135-1152.
Welte, J., Barnes, G., Wieczorek, W., Tidwell, M. C., & Parker, J. (2001). Alcohol and gambling pathology among US adults: prevalence, demographic patterns and comorbidity. Journal of studies on alcohol, 62(5), 706-712.
Welte, J. W., Wieczorek, W. F., Barnes, G. M., Tidwell, M. C., & Hoffman, J. H. (2004). The relationship of ecological and geographic factors to gambling behavior and pathology. Journal of Gambling Studies, 20(4), 405-423.