Mom, Dad It’s Only a Game! Perceived Gambling and Gaming Behaviors among Adolescents and Young Adults: an Exploratory Study

Gambling and gaming are increasingly popular activities among adolescents. Although gambling is illegal in Portugal for youth under the age of 18 years, gambling opportunities are growing, mainly due to similarity between gambling and other technology-based games. Given the relationship between gambling and gaming activities, the paucity of research on gambling and gaming behaviors in Portugal, and the potential negative consequences in the lives of young people, the goal of this study was to explore and compare the perceptions of these two behaviors between Portuguese adolescents and young adults. Results from six focus groups (three with adolescents and three with young adults, comprising 37 participants aged between 13 and 26 years) indicated different perceptions for the two age groups. For adolescents, gaming was associated with addiction whereas for young adults it was perceived a tool for increasing personal and social skills. With regard to gambling, adolescents associated it with luck and financial rewards, whereas young adults perceived it as an activity with more risks than benefits. These results suggest developmental differences that have implications for intervention programs and future research

The efficacy of a web-based gambling intervention program for high school students: A preliminary randomized study

Early onset in adolescent gambling involvement can be a precipitator of later gambling problems. The aim of the present study was to test the preliminary efficacy of a web-based gambling intervention program for students within a high school-based setting. Students attending a high school in Italy (N=168) participated in the present study (58% male–age, M=15.01; SD=0.60). Twelve classes were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: intervention ( N=6; 95 students) and control group (N=6; 73 students). Both groups received personalized feedback and then the intervention group received online training (interactive activities) for three weeks. At a two-month follow-up, students in the intervention group reported a reduction in gambling problems relative to those in the control group. However, there were no differences in gambling frequency, gambling expenditure, and attitudes toward the profitability of gambling between the two groups. In addition, frequent gamblers (i.e., those that gambled at least once a week at baseline) showed reductions in gambling problems and gambling frequency post- intervention. Frequent gamblers that only received personalized feedback showed significantly less realistic attitudes toward the profitability of gambling post-intervention. The present study is the first controlled study to test the preliminary efficacy of a web-based gambling intervention program for students within a high school-based setting. The results indicate that a brief web-based intervention delivered in the school setting may be a potentially promising strategy for a low-threshold, low-cost, preventive tool for at-risk gambling high school students

May I continue or should I stop? the effects of regulatory focus and message framings on video game players’ self-control

Two types of motivations exist in terms of regulatory focus: a promotion orientation concerned with advancement and achievement and a prevention orientation concerned with safety and security. The central premise of this research is that promotion-focused and prevention-focused players differ in their sensitivity to message frames and therefore respond with different levels of self-control. This study adopted a 2 (message frames: positive vs. negative) × 2 (regulatory focus: promotion vs. prevention) between-subjects design; the results confirmed the hypotheses that, for promotion-focused players, negative messages are significantly effective in preventing them from becoming addicted to the games; meanwhile, for prevention-focused players, positive messages significantly influenced players, leading them to become addicted. Hence, video games’ negative and addiction-related messages should be enhanced whereas positive messages should be cautiously released.Regulatory focus, regulatory fit, message frames, self-control, video game

Internet addiction: a systematic review of epidemiological research for the last decade

In the last decade, Internet usage has grown tremendously on a global scale. The increasing popularity and frequency of Internet use has led to an increasing number of reports highlighting the potential negative consequences of overuse. Over the last decade, research into Internet addiction has proliferated. This paper reviews the existing 68 epidemiological studies of Internet addiction that (i) contain quantitative empirical data, (ii) have been published after 2000, (iii) include an analysis relating to Internet addiction, (iv) include a minimum of 1000 participants, and (v) provide a full-text article published in English using the database Web of Science. Assessment tools and conceptualisations, prevalence, and associated factors in adolescents and adults are scrutinised. The results reveal the following. First, no gold standard of Internet addiction classification exists as 21 different assessment instruments have been identified. They adopt official criteria for substance use disorders or pathological gambling, no or few criteria relevant for an addiction diagnosis, time spent online, or resulting problems. Second, reported prevalence rates differ as a consequence of different assessment tools and cut-offs, ranging from 0.8% in Italy to 26.7% in Hong Kong. Third, Internet addiction is associated with a number of sociodemographic, Internet use, and psychosocial factors, as well as comorbid symptoms and disorder in adolescents and adults. The results indicate that a number of core symptoms (i.e., compulsive use, negative outcomes and salience) appear relevant for diagnosis, which assimilates Internet addiction and other addictive disorders and also differentiates them, implying a conceptualisation as syndrome with similar etiology and components, but different expressions of addictions. Limitations include the exclusion of studies with smaller sample sizes and studies focusing on specific online behaviours. Conclusively, there is a need for nosological precision so that ultimately those in need can be helped by translating the scientific evidence established in the context of Internet addiction into actual clinical practice

What is the relationship between gaming behaviors and social self-efficacy, and does family support impact this relationship?

Sammendrag Bakgrunn: Gaming en svært utbredt aktivitet, og en sosial arena for mange. Det er et åpenbart behov for en mer nyansert anerkjennelse av forskjellige spillatferder blant ungdom, da mesteparten av forskning kun omfavner avhengighet. Ulike sosiale helseutfall i ulike typer spillatferd trenger å bli belyst fra et mer balansert perspektiv. Hensikt: Undersøke sammenhengen mellom ulike GAS spillatferder og sosial mestringstro, og utforske om familiestøtte modererer disse sammenhengene. Metode: Denne studien bruker sekundærdata fra Helsevaner blant Skoleungdom undersøkelsen (HBSC, 2018), en WHO-studie utført i Norge av Universitetet i Bergen. Først ble gruppe- og kjønnsforskjeller undersøkt i hovedvariablene. Deretter ble forholdet mellom spillatferder og sosial mestringstro, samt virkningen av familiestøtte undersøkt gjennom hierarkisk multippel regresjonsanalyse og moderasjonsanalyse. Resultat: En tredjedel av utvalget ble klassifisert til å ha en GAS-atferd, hvorav de fleste var problematiske spillere. Spillatferd var mer vanlig hos gutter. Sosial mestringstro var signifikant lavere i alle spillgruppene sammenlignet med referansegruppen og var lavest i den avhengige gruppen. Familiestøtte modererte ikke forholdet mellom noen av spillatferdene og sosial mestringstro, men hadde en liten, positiv direkte effekt på sosial mestringstro. Konklusjon: Denne studien antyder et behov for flere longitudinelle studier av disse sammenhengene. Det er også et klart behov for at fremtidig forskning inkluderer den digitale verden i konstruktet til sosial mestringstro når man ser på GAS-atferd. Vi oppfordrer også videre forskning til å bruke måleinstrumenter for familiestøtte som kan knyttes mer til spillatferd når det undersøkes familiemiljøer som beskyttende faktorer for negative utfall av GAS-atferdMasteroppgave i helsefremmende arbeid og helsepsykologiHEFR395MAPS-HEFRMAPS-LO

The Interaction of Cyberaggression and Self-Efficacy within the Virtual World and the Real World

The present study seeks to analyze the impact of cyberaggression and positive feedback from an anonymous videogame player on one’s self-efficacy and performance both inside and outside of the videogame. The internet provides a unique way for individuals to interact, and the online disinhibition effect can lead users to engage in out of character behaviors once online. This shift in behavior can be an influencing factor for cyberbullying or isolated instances of cyberaggression. Negative feedback can lower one’s self-efficacy, and a lower self-efficacy can lead to a worse performance on the activity. It was hypothesized that mean comments from an anonymous competitor would lower self-efficacy both in the game and for an unrelated memory task, and similarly diminish the performance in both activities. It was also hypothesized that a positive comment after the first competition would both increase self-efficacy inside and outside the game and also improve performance on both activities. Participants in the present study took a memory test, played an online racing game, received predetermined feedback after losing the race, then played the videogame and took the memory test one final time, after rating their self-efficacy before every activity. It was discovered that the type of message received did not play a role on self-efficacy and performance both inside and outside of the videogame

Exploring social gambling: scoping, classification and evidence review

The aim of this report is to speculate on the level of concern we might have regarding consumer risk in relation to ‘social gambling.’ In doing so, this report is intended to help form the basis to initiate debate around a new and under-researched social issue; assist in setting a scientific research agenda; and, where appropriate, highlight concerns about any potential areas that need to be considered in terms of precautionary regulation. This report does not present a set of empirical research findings regarding ‘social gambling’ but rather gathers information to improve stakeholder understanding

Operator-based approaches to harm minimisation in gambling: summary, review and future directions

In this report we give critical consideration to the nature and effectiveness of harm minimisation in gambling. We identify gambling-related harm as both personal (e.g., health, wellbeing, relationships) and economic (e.g., financial) harm that occurs from exceeding one’s disposable income or disposable leisure time. We have elected to use the term ‘harm minimisation’ as the most appropriate term for reducing the impact of problem gambling, given its breadth in regard to the range of goals it seeks to achieve, and the range of means by which they may be achieved. The extent to which an employee can proactively identify a problem gambler in a gambling venue is uncertain. Research suggests that indicators do exist, such as sessional information (e.g., duration or frequency of play) and negative emotional responses to gambling losses. However, the practical implications of requiring employees to identify and interact with customers suspected of experiencing harm are questionable, particularly as the employees may not possess the clinical intervention skills which may be necessary. Based on emerging evidence, behavioural indicators identifiable in industryheld data, could be used to identify customers experiencing harm. A programme of research is underway in Great Britain and in other jurisdiction

‘You don't understand us!’ An inside perspective on adventure climbing

This paper presents a specific (insider) perspective of a small group of experienced male Scottish adventure climbers and explores through in-depth semi-structured interviews their attitudes, strategies and justifications associated with potentially high-risk climbing situations. Attention is paid to how participants feel that they are represented and viewed by others (outsiders) who do not participate in mountaineering and climbing activities. Climbers identify the significance of media, commercial and social representations of them as risk takers. The analysis explores risk as being socially constructed, with the associated assumptions being embedded in particular discourses. Climbers present themselves as rational managers of risk and provide examples of their risk-management strategies, with such characterizations being central to their identity as climbers