Do they not say that the house always wins? So why do casinos breed gambling addiction? And why do we not stop these exploitative practices?

Millions of people worldwide are trapped in financial and emotional despair due to their gambling addiction. Despite the growing problem, most casinos do not do enough to warn patrons of the addictive nature of gambling, and, in fact, many rely on gambling addiction to fuel the billion-dollar industry.

Gambling addiction is found across all classes in society and does not discriminate based on age, gender, race or social status. In America, approximately two million adults meet the criteria for “pathological gambling”, or compulsive gambling, while millions more are problem gamblers.

The negative effects of gambling addiction are very real and the behavioural, social, and emotional consequences are similar to drug addiction. However, there are no physical signs that point to a gambling addiction, and so it is sometimes referred to as the “silent addiction”, as addicts can get to the point of losing it all before they or their family realise there is a problem.

Role Of Casinos In Perpetuating Gambling Addiction

In the United States, lawmakers and the gambling industry have fuelled a rapid expansion of gambling by legalising Las Vegas-style casinos in several states. Governments promote casinos as sure sources of income for hurting economies and promise they will provide more jobs and create revenue that will be put into schools.

However, when proposing to legalise casinos, legislators do not talk about the money that will be needed to support gambling education and create gambling addiction treatment programmes. Some states do set aside money for these programmes, as they begin to build casinos, essentially acknowledging the fact that by introducing casinos they will be creating new groups of addicts in the community.

Widespread government backing makes gambling seem harmless, and casinos are problematically touted as entertainment centres similar to ballparks and movie theatres. State governments downsize the dark side of allowing casinos to be built and never mention the destruction gambling addiction can cause.

A new report, and one of the few independent research reports conducted outside of the control of the gambling industry, gives an objective cost benefit analysis of introducing casinos into communities. The report concludes that the social and economic costs far outweigh any potential short-term benefits, and that casinos are a regressive form of income for states that ultimately bring harm to communities.

Legislators argue that problem gamblers would still gamble and that casinos just concentrate the gambling in one place. However, casinos make the loss of money to gambling more systematic and widespread. They offer easy access and temptation for citizens to gamble closer to home and more often. People living within 10 miles of a casino are twice as likely to develop a gambling addiction as those who do not have access to this type of gambling.

Furthermore, casinos are disproportionately dependent on problem gamblers for the majority of profits. Problem gamblers contribute to 40-60% of slot-machine revenue. Slot machines are highly addictive and designed to persuade gamblers to spend more time on the machine and play until their money is gone. When people get hooked on gambling, it creates financial security for the casino and despair for the gambler and his or her family.

According to Bill Kearney, a former gambling addict and avid anti-gambling campaigner, casinos operate like amusement parks with no safety belts on their rides — they offer no safeguards to help protect gamblers from becoming addicts.

Current provisions, such as posting the 1-800-GAMBLER hotline, which helps refer people to gamblers anonymous groups and self-exclusion programmes, where people can opt to have themselves banned from casinos when they develop a problem, only address the issue after one has already become an addict. They do not work to prevent addiction from developing.

Look out for Part 2 of this article, where we look at the policy changes needed to help prevent gambling addiction.

Visit the The Cabin Singapore page to find out more about Suresh’s work.

_{This post was first published on The Cabin Singapore blog and has been reposted on Executive Lifestyle with the permission of the author.}

_{Edited by Nedda Chaplin
Image credit: People in the casino gambling from Shutterstock
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