Gambling is the act of wagering something of value on a random event with an intention to win something else of value. The term gambling is often associated with games such as poker, roulette and slots.
Harmful gambling is a problem that can affect any person from any walk of life. It can lead to financial disaster, strain relationships and interfere with work. It can also be linked to a range of other problems, such as alcohol and gambling addictions, mental health disorders, drug use, and debt.
Definition of harm and conceptual framework
The gambling environment includes casino locations, racetracks, and other gaming venues where people can bet money on games. These venues are regulated and controlled by governments. The monetary returns from these activities are often taxed.
Binge gamblers are individuals who regularly play at a level that causes harm, even though they do not gamble for significant amounts of time. This group of people are particularly important to consider when measuring harm because they are often more vulnerable to harmful gambling behaviours.
Legacy harms relate to those harms that continue to occur (or emerge) even if the person’s engagement with gambling ceases through changes in their own or someone else’s behaviour. These include the harms that are caused by a gambling problem and are related to the gambling activity, as well as those resulting from social support for a gambling problem.
There is a need for a definition of harm that captures the full breadth of gambling related harm, and a conceptual framework that can be used to develop more appropriate measures of harm. This is an important first step in addressing the many aspects of the social, cultural and economic impact of gambling.