Gambling is a popular pastime with a long history. It involves betting on an event, usually an outcome based on luck or chance, where the odds are compared with the amount that could be won. Examples include betting on a football match or scratchcard. The activity can also involve lying, stealing or embezzlement to fund gambling activities.
Problematic gambling results in a range of adverse health and social consequences. These can occur at the individual, interpersonal and community/society levels (Fig. 1). Personal level impacts affect gamblers themselves, for example, gambling may cause psychological distress such as feelings of guilt and anxiety. Interpersonal level impacts may include the escalation of debt, which can affect family members and friends, and lead to financial strain or homelessness. Community/society level externalities are primarily monetary and include general costs, cost of problem gambling and long-term cost.
While gambling is often seen as an enjoyable pastime, it can become problematic when it is used to profit or escape from a stressful situation. For example, when gambling is used to escape from work-related stress, it can result in increased pressure on other areas of life and contribute to a vicious cycle of increasing problems.
To date, empirical research has mainly focused on the monetary cost/benefit analysis of gambling. However, there is growing recognition that social impacts are important and need to be considered. This article reviews complementing and contrasting methodologies to produce a conceptual model of gambling impacts where a public health perspective is applied.
