Gambling involves risking something of value on an event involving chance, such as the roll of a dice or a spin of a roulette wheel. This event could be an outcome of a sporting competition, a casino game, or even an election. Gambling often carries negative social, economic, and personal consequences for those who participate. Despite these consequences, gambling continues to be an important part of our economy, and is a source of employment for many people around the world.
The article aims to review complementing and contrasting methodologies for measuring costs and benefits in gambling studies, with particular focus on the notion of “social” impacts. This definition is different from monetary, as it aims to aggregate societal real wealth and encompasses non-personal dimensions of impact (e.g., social suffering or loss of well-being). The author proposes a conceptual model that can serve as a common methodology for assessing gambling impacts, with the goal to discover how they change gamblers’ quality of life. This approach is in line with the health-related quality of life weights – or disability weights – used in drug and alcohol research.
While most individuals participate in gambling as an enjoyable social activity, a small group of individuals develop serious and often damaging problems. Problem gambling is usually characterized by the loss of control over spending and time spent. This behavior may also be accompanied by other symptoms, such as an inability to stop gambling and negative effects on family and friends. Moreover, there are many warning signs that suggest a person is at risk of becoming compulsive gambler, including those described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV (DSM-IV), the official guide for psychologists.